DARE TO BE DIFFERENT!

By Kim Jopet Santos

“If you want to get what everyone is getting, do what everyone is doing.”

Adulthood is one of the most important stages in life. When I was a kid, I always wanted to reach this stage. Often times, I would imitate an adult’s gesture, mimic their speech, and even try to think the way they do. For me, adulthood offers special benefits in life: having well-off resources, being an authority, even having privileged activities that kids can only dream about. From this, I would come to expect that adults are supposed to be way better than kids; even thinking that “adults” are far more disciplined, more value-oriented and matured enough than kids. Well, I guess, I was wrong in a certain spectrum of light here. There is absolutely an absurd thing in this “adult” world. What is it?

Everyone just seemed to behave like they were still teenagers even though in reality they are “adults”. There are times when we can’t see any distinction between and 18 year-old and a 50 year-old, well, apart from their age. It is as if there was no change at all!

I truly believe that everyone is unique. Everyone has his or her talents to share. In the seminary, I’ve worked so hard to be like everyone else. I exert the same efforts my classmates who are better in class are excelling. I try to learn things in the easiest way possible as others do, even though I know that I have to learn it in the hard way.

One of the great Socratic precepts is “Know Thyself!” According to this precept, human mind is like a storehouse of truth waiting to be developed. Knowing thyself leads a person to be different. What does this means? It means, one will not be afraid to challenge the norm and be willing to take the risks. It means making one’s own path to traverse and not just going with the flow and day-dreaming the person who we want to be.

In fact, most of us won’t even read our notes and lessons or at least open our books unless there is an approaching exam. And to tell you the truth, I am one of them. That is because our society’s mediocrity still influences us. We don’t take risks to prove ourselves above the rest. We have no idea of better. All we know is to do things good enough. Consequently, I’ve come to realize that every day of our life is like an exam, a quiz, a challenge. Every day, we either pass or fail in the exam of life. Every day, we have the chance to grow. Every day is an opportunity to become a better person.

In the end, I want to get away from the notion of forcing myself to be like others, because in fact, I don’t need to be like them. “Everyone is unique.”

Therefore, as how the seminary formation is exerting efforts to labor in giving birth to the minds of each seminarian that is pregnant in truth, I too, will strive to bring the abundance of potentials and capabilities within me until it came out into fruition.

Why?

“Because… I’m Different!”