Rekindling Interest
Last week, I went to hear Aimee Nezhukumatathil read from her various works of poetry. We read some of her poems in English class, but I wasn’t a huge fan. I admit, I went because it was required, like most of the others there. Despite this, the Assembly Hall’s first floor was nearly full, and I spoke to many other students on the way back and later that evening about her performance. The following audience debate was quite lively.I wonder, though, what it might have been like if the poetry reading wasn’t required for any students. Would it have been like some meditations, where I find myself sitting among fifteen or twenty other students? Would it be like a lunch with an assembly speaker in the Latin Study, where students are notorious for absence?Exeter asserts to accept intellectually driven and curious students, and as far as I know, most of us at least claimed that we possess this trait on our applications. Does something change, then, when we officially become students? It seems that, when given opportunities to participate in often fascinating lectures, conversations or learning experiences that provide us with no direct personal gain, we tend to opt out.When I talk about a book I’m reading for pleasure, people scoff or say they wish they still had time to read. One recent cum laude grad told me they didn’t read a single unrequired book during four years at Exeter. Many Exeter students simply prefer free time to absolutely anything else. It’s not that I’m a shining example, either. I often skip out on these opportunities too, choosing to work more on a lab, study for a test or even watch a movie.But I think it’s important and interesting for us to explore where the whimsy went, to understand when our genuine curiosity and eagerness were dispelled. I don’t mean to exaggerate the situation, but we seem to become so absorbed in our GPAs, our test scores, our future college acceptances (or our hours of sleep) in an upsettingly competitive cycle.I’ve had countless conversations where I’ve discovered the numerous passions and interests of fellow Exonians. I find these comforting and encouraging. We’re not a hopeless group, but when the time comes for us to pause, look around and forget about all the things we’re told to care about, we don’t. Perhaps we all just need a reminder of the innate value in doing something just to do it, not because we should for any particular reason, but simply because it piques our interest and might make us a little happier.We’re told relentlessly about the importance of escaping the "Exeter bubble" and all it entails, hearing it so often that it has lost some of its meaning. But the reasons it has been repeated so many times are completely valid. We all seem to know it would be better for us, so I suppose we simply must encourage each other to forget about personal gain and transcripts. There’s a clear need for a shift to a culture that supports a more interested student body as a whole.