2019 was, all in all; a cheery year. There were ups and downs, yes; but through each and every one of them I have grown and changed. Whilst some may say that a man becomes a new person every occasion wherein he makes a dramatic change to his personality or nature; this is false. A person is born anew every day, with the option to journey down that same, worn dark tunnel or to hunt for a new light and forge a new path. A person should nary fear that they are trapped in their life, and instead go forth, and strive to be a better person.
And so, too, it is with the events that come. They change the world around you, and if you allow it, they change you too. But, with the awareness granted to us of virtue of sapience, we can learn from our follies and our mistakes; and advance ever higher.
Of course, This year, two thousand and nineteen years after the believed birth of one of the most influential figures in history; it has changed me. 2019 provided numerous learning experiences, and from them I have developed. However, I have no wish to ramble on ‘till heat death, so instead I shall skim the surface of one of the experiences that changed me the most. In my ‘trip’ to India, (Kolkata, of West Bengal) I not only met much of my extended family (We’re a big bunch apparently), but I did some minor volunteering for a palliative care information ‘shack’, just outside a government hospital. There I handed out some leaflets, and recorded some of the patients’ names. It was…enlightening. There were five and four year olds with cancer, the were children and adults alike. And so few of them had much opportunity, being unable to read. It struck me, then my position in life. Often, I had wondered the great slip of luck that made me who I am – why was I born in this form? What serendipitous chance caused me to be who I am? But now, it was impressed upon me even further. I wish to make a change in this, one day. But if I succeed, who can say? What great fate can shape us, what great luck?
Now, however, I should think away from that slippery path of wandering in the future, and dart back into the past. I should perhaps discuss the most enjoyable experience of this school year – and this is surprisingly hard to say. But perhaps it can be as clear as day. I would claim, not to dally in the common of choices, that the most enjoyable period may be indeed my Year 8 camp. Whilst I would usually shy away from camps – I am bookish person before being one accustomed to the mud and dirt; I found this curiously fun. I grew closer to my school friends and made a few more, something sadly novel in my life. I suppose that I should give a few honourable mentions to all the fun activities in this year, the excursions to Bell Shakespeare, and perhaps the dissection of animal hearts, which despite its gory nature, was extremely fun.
I learnt the most about my own nature perhaps during the occasional talks of philosophy and psychology that spring up at random. Through these I learnt my fears and opinions of the world around me, realising themselves when something came too far beyond my comfort.
In its entirety, I have developed and changed, evolved beyond how and what I was, though perhaps still I am in my chrysalis. Perhaps we all are, never yet to truly emerge.