I remember being in elementary school and feeling frustrated when I truly didn’t understand math. It seemed like the entire class understood everything so there was no way I was going to ask for help. I, specifically, recall being so upset about not understanding my homework in 2nd grade that my Dad ended up doing it for me. I also, vividly, recall failing that assignment. That was the last time I asked my Dad for help with math. The best part of math is when you don’t understand the basics of concepts, applications, and skills, it makes it more challenging to continue on to higher levels of mathematics. I’m sure every person has a similar story with one of the subjects taught in America schools. Whether it be chemistry, biology, English, art, social studies, history, even physical education. None the less, we go to school (at a minimum) 13 years; Kindergarten through 12th grade and at the end of it we still haven’t, one time, had a subject on overcoming adversity.
What is adversity? This could be summed up with one simple word, difficulty. As simple of a word that may be, it’s the hardest thing to understand, to teach, to deal with, and most importantly to overcome. Every person, without exception, will at some point be faced with adversity. There are many forms of adversity; Physical, emotional, mental, social, spiritual, racial, and financial, to name a handful. So if every person will be faced with adversity and no matter what no one can avoid adversity, why is the topic not discussed in schools? Why is there not a subject called overcoming adversity? I’ve spent 19 years in school and never once did I have a subject that prepared me for difficulty.
As I write this blog in 2020, there’s not a person in the world that’s not experiencing the same adversity; Covid-19. The education system has been impacted, the workforce has been impacted, the stock market has been impacted, the entire economy and every person (regardless of age) has been impacted. So what are we doing? The infamous answer, it depends. Some people have had an opportunity to work from home and if you talk to those people, this opportunity may seem less than an opportunity due to the non existence of work/life balance. Others have been completely out of a job and struggling to put food on their table, clothes on their back, and roofs over their head… And their children’s. Some have had to continue going to work, as if there’s not a pandemic happening, and risking their health and their families health. Some have had to send their children back to school with masks, 6ft apart, no recess, and lunch in their rooms versus sitting with their friends. Some have had to play teacher and educate their children from home. Some have had to go hungry because school lunches are not as prevalent. Some have no school supplies or books at home or laptops so e-learning is impossible. Some have endured abuse, much more than when they were able to escape 6 hours a day for school. Some special needs children that require IEPs are not getting the education they need. Overall, each person is in the same sea, but not the same boat.
Imagine if from the time you were a toddler, difficulties were discussed, demonstrated, and strategies to overcome were part of our curriculum. Imagine if throughout your entire education there were higher levels of overcoming adversities. Maybe at an early age it was simply identifying adversities. Clearly, there is no way to predict what adversities you, specifically, will come across. However, what can be predicted is they will happen to each and everyone of you. I’ve noticed in my life that all things are relative. What if at a young age we were able to empathize with others that were dealing with difficulties. Perhaps we discussed these difficulties openly and tried to help each other. Too often, things are a secret and our adversities are not to be discussed because it may be looked upon as a sign of weakness. People are embarrassed that they have things they need to deal with it and that they are not living the perfect life. Well, I have breaking news for everyone. There is no one living the perfect life. There is no such thing and the sooner we come to realize that perfection is something that is unattainable, unreachable, and without any flaws or difficulties. I would be lying if as a parent I didn’t admit I, too, say practice makes perfect.
Overall, I believe that if people didn’t feel like they had to be perfect, if we didn’t compete so much to be better than the next and focused more on simply being better tomorrow than we are today, and we understood that we all have difficulties we have to overcome, we could be happier and healthier humans.