Who Wants a Worm Anyway? by Tatum

Who Wants a Worm Anyway? by Tatum - January 2019 Scholarship Essay

While morning may emerge quietly, it quickly swells with the sounds and promises of a new day. The thought of being holed up and studiously laboring away during this time feels criminal as the day is fresh and the plans are quickly developing. On the other hand, night reverses this tempo. To begin with, the night is full of life as friends celebrate birthdays and families reconvene. However, as time ticks on, one by one each individual decides it is time for another night of dreaming about what the following day will bring. Laughter and conversation is replaced by the sounds of soft breathing and crickets. The world is finally still and will remain at peace until morning.

This stillness is where I find my stride. With the distractions of the day subsided, clarity and focus is finally attainable. Suddenly, calculations solve themselves and words fly straight out of my pen. I feel as though I am time traveling, achieving all that is possible while the rest of the world is paused. No commitments in a couple hours restrict the time I have to work and thus, I am free from the constraints of time itself, the mark of true focus.

If you ask someone what they fear, you might expect them to answer spiders, heights, or even more generally, death. I believe the underlying commonality amongst all of these is the fear they will not have enough time to accomplish what they perceive as a full and satisfactory life. Everyone wants to feel that they matter and that they are spending their time on this Earth wisely. The feeling of time traveling I experience while working at night satiates/nulls this fear temporarily. The commitments and chores of a new day break night’s quietude with the arrival of morning. Consequently, morning does not and could not provide the same relief. Night unequivocally provides the freedom needed to work as it releases you from the chaos of the day, allowing one to decompress and subsequently be productive. People often criticize night owls, confusing them with procrastinators and slackers. However, night owls characteristically take hold of the opportunities both day and night present, recognizing the importance of both working hard and enjoying life along the way. True to their namesake, night owls are tenacious and wise.

Although the early bird gets the worm, who wants a worm anyway?