How to Human: 101 by Leah

How to Human: 101 by Leah - March 2019 Scholarship Essay

“Now, if I remember correctly… It should be right through here.” My last few words echoed slightly as the chattering crowd ambled through the large double doors of the high school auditorium.

“You’ve already heard from some of our top classroom teachers today, but I wanted to bring you in here to talk about some of the other important things you will learn at NASH.” I turned to face the group as the last few students filed in. “Over the next few years, you are going to write more essays and fill in more multiple-choice bubbles than you can count. There are going to be more classrooms and subjects than ever before, and for the first time you will be able to choose to some degree the areas that you want to study. But the most important subject of all is one that you’ve always been learning, ever since your first day in preschool… one that you will continue to study daily for the rest of your life, long after you’ve graduated from college. Any idea what it is?”

A sea of confused faces blinked back at me. “No guesses? Well, that’s not entirely surprising. This class doesn’t have a name, and you probably never even realized that you were enrolled in it. I like to call it “How to Human: 101.”

“You might think that we’ve been putting thirty teenagers together in small concrete rooms as a Millennial science experiment, and I’ll agree, sometimes it definitely seems that way…” The pair of girls to my left exchanged a mischievous glance and giggled. “But I’ll argue that learning from one another has just as powerful an effect on your future as any other subject this high school can offer you.”

“You’re going to learn math and science and history too of course, but if I’m being entirely honest, in ten years you won’t remember most of it. That’s why How to Human: 101 is the most important class you take, because you will use it every single day for the rest of your lives.” I looked around at the young boys and girls facing me. “That’s not to say that it’ll be easy. You’re going to make some mistakes – a lot of them. Because being a human is a complicated, intricate, thorny business, and it’s not like there’s a textbook you can reference. These are the first few years that you are feeling complex thoughts and emotions, and it’s like seeing colors for the first time – everything will give you an intense reaction until your brain figures out what to do with all this new information. The good news is that it does pass, although the bad news is that it only gets easier with experience.”

“The thing is, the ability to deftly handle gossip, failure, or disagreements is just as laborious as studying history, math, or science. Every day, you will have to work with people who are different from yourself, and you will have to find compromises and fight for your point of view while also respecting the opinions of others. So, although you will spend many hours on homework and studying in the next four years, make sure you balance that time by learning with your friends and challenging yourself in other ways. If you have trouble understanding a math problem, find the student who gets the best test scores and ask them for help. Volunteer to read aloud in class or audition for the school play. Try out for your favorite sport, even if you’re terrible at it, and then work to get better. Ask that cute classmate if they want to hang out sometime. And if some of this doesn’t work out, pull a Taylor Swift and shake it all off! Remember, you’re still learning in How to Human 101 and you’re not going to ace every test. Understand what you did right and what needs to improve and try it all again. Try a little bit of everything, in fact, and find your passion and use it to drive your contributions to society.”

“Four years from now, your parents, guidance counselors, and every college that gets its hands on your email address are all going to ask you what you want to do with the rest of your life, and it’s helpful to already have your answer ready. So, use your time now to challenge yourself and to grow as a person, to get to know your strengths and weaknesses, and to always be improving. Don’t think of it as four years of high school, but do take every day as a step closer to becoming the person you want to become.” I smiled to myself as I thought of the immense potential of these new students in front of me. “That concludes our tour for today, but feel free to stick around if you have any more questions. Good luck next year!”