I Want To Know The Worst Thing Anyone Has Ever Said To You
Always The Underachiever, Never The Success... I've had bad things said about me, as I'm sure anyone has. A lot of it can stem from arguments, in the heat of the moment. And most of them, I can brush off, mainly because I don't hold them to be true, or because people are too close to the situation to think clearly. But one thing really hit me hard. I had written a paper (the night before, as was my custom) for a theology class in high school.
My teacher wrote at the end: "Your ideas hold water, and your concepts have force, but your ideas are muddled, and you often contradict yourself. It's clear that you wrote this very quickly. You show great intelligence in your arguments, but you don't let it fully shine through, as it could have had you taken the time and effort to devote yourself to your work. That said, I guess the worst thing I can say about this paper [and me, by extension, which I held to be very true], is that it underachieves the expectation put forth by your prose."
That really hit me hard at the time, but as always, I shrugged it off, until college, last year, when again, I was underachieving, and it almost cost me a great deal. I found that paper, and read it. I really hadn't changed, since then, I realized. I had taken everything for granted, and was just coasting, on a ship of apathy and mediocrity. Reading that again really pushed me to get my act together and to work hard, not for my classes or for my teachers, but for myself, to fulfill my potential that I felt I had in me. I still slip back into underachieving, at times, but I keep that comment close to my heart whenever I feel like putting work off and lazing about, when I have work to do.
My teacher wrote at the end: "Your ideas hold water, and your concepts have force, but your ideas are muddled, and you often contradict yourself. It's clear that you wrote this very quickly. You show great intelligence in your arguments, but you don't let it fully shine through, as it could have had you taken the time and effort to devote yourself to your work. That said, I guess the worst thing I can say about this paper [and me, by extension, which I held to be very true], is that it underachieves the expectation put forth by your prose."
That really hit me hard at the time, but as always, I shrugged it off, until college, last year, when again, I was underachieving, and it almost cost me a great deal. I found that paper, and read it. I really hadn't changed, since then, I realized. I had taken everything for granted, and was just coasting, on a ship of apathy and mediocrity. Reading that again really pushed me to get my act together and to work hard, not for my classes or for my teachers, but for myself, to fulfill my potential that I felt I had in me. I still slip back into underachieving, at times, but I keep that comment close to my heart whenever I feel like putting work off and lazing about, when I have work to do.
31-35, M