For all of my life I’ve allowed someone else to determine my happiness. I’ve allowed others to tell me how I should live my life, how I should look, and even how I should behave. However, I’ve recently decided that enough was enough. It was time for me to focus on the things that I wanted, and not what others wanted for me.
I started last semester with little to no self-love, and a course called BiSci 3. This course took me on an incredible journey of self-exploration. The course begins by teaching students about the bigger picture: the Universe, Earth, who we are as humans, and our role in the grand scheme of things. It took a while for me to realize that we belong to something so much greater than ourselves. BiSci 3 invited me to consider the fact that I am made of nothing more than dirt and water, a product of the Earth. It encouraged me to consider the story of the Earth as the story of myself. Relating each reading back to something significant in my life that perhaps I hadn’t quite explored or questioned before then.
The second part of the class was designed to bring attention to the critical condition that Earth is currently in; and the damage that we have caused as a species. This part of the course asked me to question my strongest beliefs before asking me to question why I hadn’t taken any action on what I knew to be wrong. How could I watch the planet in which I depend on for survival be destroyed by my own neglect? After hours and hours of constant reflection, it all related back to me. I didn’t believe in myself and I didn’t see any reason too either.
The third and final part of this course is what truly blew my mind. The third section of this course was based on happiness. This is not the type of happiness that you get from buying new things or the presence of a significant other. I’m talking about genuine psychological well-being. The kind of happiness that comes from within yourself. This course taught me that it’s okay to take care of myself: both mentally and physically.
In the beginning, this class felt more like a waste of my time than anything else, but thanks to BiSci 3 I have come to realize that there are more important things in this world than myself. There is no reason to worry about silly things like image or the opinion of others because at the end of the day they are exactly that- opinions, neither right nor wrong; and we have more important issues at hand.