High school is over. Now it’s totally over, after four years of period. I joked to my teachers, who know me longer than anybody in school, “Finally, sir/ma’am, after four years of waiting!”. We laughed afterwards. But in reality, I never really waited for this moment.
Maybe the best thing high schools—both American and Indonesian—have to offer is routine. The exact hour-to-hour schedule programmed to the candidates of civilized civilians (mostly, some will go to military). Unconsciously, we high schoolers have no worry and need not to think about the daily schedule. It is constituted in the system. The rest, the derivatives of the system, will follow up in forms of organizations, extracurricular, sports, hanging out, orfilm making. It is autopilot, the other activities follows up.
After four years of scheduling, finally it is over. For some time, though. College will start off soon, but not that soon. Even college will offer a different kind of system, at least in here, it will be more independently and individually sufficient. But now what I am experiencing is a gap between them. I am currently standing in a valley where maybe this is my first time having so much free time without any designated system to tell me what to do. Shortly, because this is my first summer break (like those long summer break in the US schools).
What amazes me so much is surprisingly not far from the idea of high school system. This is what I have been doing since the day I set myself free from high school: Learning.
The difference is, I have the freedom to learn anything I want. Before, I used to be held off by the system to learn the things they dictate, keeping me off from the things I really want to learn. In my Indonesian high school, I chose to be in the social sciences class, because that’s where my passion of learning lies (outside of astronomy or other natural sciences like marine biology, zoology, etc.). I knew they would have Sociology and Economy, and a deeper version of History.
My first days in the social sciences class were full of enthusiasm, I was filled with wonders and curiosity when I read my Sociology book. Economic science is getting more interesting too. But everything broke down. I became disappointed with the system’s take on those subjects. Instead of doing more critical discussions, or current issues, we are taught to memorize key points of the text books. All is done for the grades. We learn not to be more critical, we don’t even learn, we only memorize. And suddenly those interesting subjects lost their souls.
In the US, I found a more open system. The teachers are pushing for more critical thoughts. Almost no multiple choice test were given (except for the Government class). My film class gave a test that shocked me at first, on how deep the analysis on a documentary that I should write. And the teacher will personally check it, and adding notes beside our answers after they return our test. We are also asked to write a film scenario, a real 10-page film scenario. This course could only be enjoyed in some certain schools, if not courses out of the school, in Indonesia. In my speech class, we are taught to demonstrate speeches with rhetorical devices. Maybe it’s the reason why American people have so much great speakers. My friend used the rhetorical device taught in our speech class on his campaign speech for the class presidency. What we learn in class is being implemented in our lives, maybe unconsciously.
Today, I have the freedom to learn anything back. I can finally read books on world history, biographies of world leaders, books about developmental economics, a book about international diplomacy, and so on. I know that I will get this kind of vastness in learning soon in college, but even university is known for the system. Some successful people drop out of college, Bill Gates, and Steve Jobs to name few. Why? Because they chose to learn without borders. Learn and do things that they love.
However, I have difficulties in adjusting myself to the fresh freedom I now have. I have to admit that I am still rather impulsive towards learning itself. I cannot control myself to stick to one topic for a long period of time. I jump from books to books, one chapter of book A, then two chapters of book B. I am overwhelmed by the freedom I have, by the opportunities to learn anything I want. I open interesting articles online, even found a great book distributed freely by Google Books, the autobiography of Giuseppe Garibaldi. While I am really tempted to read that book and adventures of the Italian hero, I realize that I haven’t even finished Sukarno and Malcolm X yet.
The biggest challenge to this generation is to focus. I feel that my generation is very open to anything, the technology has virtually demolished borders. Opportunities are open to anyone. This generation has grown up with an idea in mind that they can be anything, and pushed forward to achieve great things, even in the young age. Maybe some fifty years ago, eighteen and nineteen year-olds were busy working on their parent’s shop and have nothing in mind to create big networks of social life or browse almost limitless information and knowledge from the web. My generation in this dawn age of maturity, we are already busy with expanding social networks, worldwide even, creatively producing works that used to be expensive and exclusive (like songs, films, or books), and could afford easily information and latest updates from a place oceans away. We are busy youngsters, with restless minds implanted with dreams, hopes, and inspirations.
For the time I feel my mind is filled with thoughts, non-stop, from the point I am awake until the point I (may) have difficulties in getting to sleep because my mind won’t stop thinking. This is the mind of the generation, perhaps. The openness to knowledge that supplies our brain almost infinitely makes our mind a busy mind. We weren’t living in enclosures anymore, where youngsters don’t really know or won’t put “far” information, like say, Syria’s Civil War, or their Instagram number of likes, to their concerns.
Until this point, like other people in my generation, if I stop, I will have ideas and thoughts coming. It’s good, but overload of information in mind is not. Sometimes I just wish that I can repress those jumpy impulses. I should. Like the impulse for me to write this essay (or more properly, ramblings). Me, and my generation have a bright future ahead. We are the generation that have brought open mindedness to the highest point of history. We are the generation that will change the world. But first, we still need to change ourselves. Soon will come the day where this generation will reign, and let’s hope it won’t be filled with narcissistic leaders, taking selfies or updating stuff while on important events. Let’s believe that this generation have the power to control the impulses and use the enormous creative energy to the most efficient point. Who knows that if in the future we will be living in the best moment of civilization?
And I just heard the azan for Isya calling for the last obligatory prayer of the day. I should stop writing it here. I hope this ramblings will give a thought on you, maybe some inspiration, or just some realization. Ah, and talking about realization, I just realized I am not really free from the system. Yet.
I still have to study for SBMPTN. College selection.
Maybe one day my generation will demolish all of this soulless system. Maybe. Let’s hope so.
