like i said...

B just came up to my desk, lookin hella destitute. depressed about school, life and papers, B proceeded to release, looking on the verge of tears. life should not rip you apart like this! school shouldn't rip you apart like this!

i remember i was sitting in an advisor's office and was told that i was too distracted with life. that my problem lie in the fact that i wasn't concentrating on my schoolwork. little did i know that "distraction with life" is a common problem of young black students from backgrounds like mine in college

that was the point i decided to heed the advice i was told my first year here at wash u:

brief story:
i had come back to the floor after receiving a c or so on a paper and was depressed. L saw me, and said "think about it. when you're 70 years old, sitting on your wraparound porch (i've always wanted one of these) watching your grandchildren play in your yard, are you going to be thinking about the day you got a c in a class at wash u?"  it was a poignant question from a deep person.

i had to figure out where my priorities lay in life. not so much regarding school v. living, but what makes/keeps me Happy. what makes/helps me feel Better about myself. these are the activities i focus on. so what if i get a d in a class that was not in my major?  so what if my GPA is not as great as it could have been? the past is the past, and the knowledge i've learned here is invaluable on
so.
many.
different.
levels.

that's what matters to me.