Epiphany

I reached an epiphany yesterday (Tuesday) during class at 6pm. My entrepreneurship seminar usually goes from 5-6pm but the two guest speakers (co-founders, CEO & CTO of a start-up) arrived late at 5:30pm. At 6pm, I had the choice to leave and head home or to stay and finish listening to their talk. Typically, I would definitely leave. I mean, class is officially over - why would I want to stay? BUT THEN, on this ordinary yet epiphanic Tuesday, I realized that I'm at school to learn! The purpose of attending class is not to occupy a seat, to get that check in participation, or even to make myself feel like I'm fulfilling my tuition's worth. I'm here at college to gain knowledge and invest in things I'm interested in. I love the electives I've taken and am currently taking so why treat it as work? So I stayed until the talk was over. I'm so amazed that I stayed overtime solely because I wanted to be there. I genuinely wanted to learn! I really enjoyed hearing about the two co-founders' experiences with their startup and I didn't focus on the time or length of their presentation. Learning was surprisingly fun!

I wish I realized this 6 semesters ago when the freshmen me dreaded everything about school. Maybe I wouldn't have carried that dread over the course of the next three/four years. But then again... what if this epiphany is merely a symptom of graduation goggles in disguise?

In any case, I like my epiphany. It's a good reminder for the rest of this semester and the next and also for whatever learning's in store in the future. Learning for the sake of learning. Who knew?