With effectively just a month to go before I face the semester-end examinations and graduate from college (fingers crossed!), the following lines from Shakespeare’s sonnet ‘The Seven Ages’ seem to constantly reverberate in my pensive mind, “All the world’s a stage, and all the men and women merely players; They have their exits and their entrances ,and one man in his time plays many parts; His acts being seven ages.”
Indeed, Shakespeare in his infinite wisdom was accurate in suggesting that life is nothing but a collection of various ephemeral phases. There is something to gain and lose from each phase: each ‘act’ leaves a little bit of itself with you, and such learning then reflects in the attitudes, opinions and perceptions you demonstrate going forward.
As a fresher I had always hoped that college would change me in fascinating ways and that by the end of three years, I’d walk out an improved version of myself. As the curtains to graduation draw to a close, I can say that I have changed, as I had hoped I would. And it is the following revelation that has contributed the most to my personality: It’s not what your college does for you that changes you. It is what you do for your college (and in your college life) that brings out the best in you.
I learnt this lesson after months of sulking over not making it to my dream college. I’m sure a lot of you dealt with such feelings of inferiority as well. It is true that some institutions provide you more exposure than others. But true triumph exists in seeking opportunity, creating it even, and then succeeding in it by giving it all you’ve got. A majestic creature like the Phoenix rises from the ashes. Passion and ambition always shine through in even the darkest of times.
In hindsight, I’d say that college is all about self-exploration and discovery: things that come only when you immerse yourself into the world of possibilities. One needs to step out of one’s comfort zone and disregard limitations. Because honestly, in these prime years, limitations are nothing but a deceitful ploy of a timid mind.
Thus, invest your all for three years, and you’ll be rewarded in handsome dividends worth cherishing over a lifetime.
Good Luck!
Image Credits: picturesdp.blogspot.co.in
Kriti Sharma
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