05/08/2025
You Only Meet Yourself After the School Bell Stops Ringing
It’s wild how we spend more than a decade inside classrooms, surrounded by people we didn’t choose, memorizing facts we’ll promptly forget, and somehow, we’re expected to come out of it knowing who we are. Like, congratulations on surviving 10,000 hours of group work and forced P.E. dancing, what’s your five-year plan?
Spoiler: most of us only meet ourselves after college. And not in the “finally, I have it all figured out” way. More like in the “wait, I’m allowed to say no to plans?” kind of way. Or the “So you’re telling me I actually enjoy silence and not performance tasks?” revelation.
The System Wasn’t Built for Self-Knowledge
Let’s be honest. The school system isn’t exactly a haven for self-discovery. It’s more of a training ground for punctuality, obedience, and sitting still for inhumane amounts of time. Sure, we had “club time” and “free play,” but those were sandwiched between six subjects, two exams, and a lunch break where you had to eat fast or risk not lining up for the canteen ever again.
If you happened to be introverted or just mildly allergic to small talk, tough luck. The school bell is basically a factory whistle. You march in, march out, and in between, you’re expected to recite with enthusiasm and share group grades with people who think “bare minimum” is a personality trait.
Alone Time? What a Concept.
For introverts, school was like being stuck at a mall opening every day from 7 AM to 5 PM. Alone time wasn’t a thing, it was an elusive luxury, like AC in public school or a guidance counselor who actually asked, “How are you, really?”
So you learn to perform. To mask. To “participate” even when your soul is quietly shriveling. And by the time you hit college (or survive it) you’re exhausted, but suddenly free. And that’s when you start hearing your own thoughts. Sometimes for the first time.
Childhood Interests, Meet the Chopping Block
Remember when you liked drawing? Or building weird things out of cardboard? Or memorizing random dinosaur facts for no reason? Yeah, that all got filed under “not priority” the moment quizzes, assignments, and your mom’s “Mag-doctor ka ha?” started taking over your life.
We’re taught early that interests are hobbies, and hobbies are distractions. So unless it looks good on a resume or can be used in a group project, it’s benched. You spend your formative years sidelining what makes you you, then wonder why your adult self feels like a stranger.
And Then You Finally Meet… Yourself.
Only when the noise dies down, when you’re no longer being graded or scheduled or told what “success” looks like, do you get to ask, What do I actually like? What energizes me? What drains me? Do I want to live in a city, or do I just think I should?
And that’s the plot twist, isn’t it? You spend half your life being shaped, trimmed, and streamlined to fit a mold, and the other half realizing you were probably never meant to fit it in the first place.
But hey, late is better than never. Especially when what you’re finally meeting is you.
