There are a lot of measurement in this world. But I would like to talk about time and how it often plays tricks on us.
When I was about 13 years old, my mom decided to move me to a boarding school. At first, I tried to refuse as my mother demanded because my performance got worse at my current school as she tried to ask me to be more focus to my education. In my new school, I was downgraded to be 7 grade from 8 grade (non educational issue). I have an issue about age. I was afraid that people will look down on me and tell me that I was the oldest person in the room. I’m really afraid if a new person asked me about my age.
Time flies, I still hate my birthday. My friends often throw jokes at me by asking me, “How old are you when you graduate?”, but instead of making this nonsense jokes as an offensive words, I try to respect my time and make the best out of it.
I started to write down about my dreams, I studied very hard. I always spend time reading book, solving math, learning chemistry in high school until my teacher got amazed on how I complete all of tasks in the books (at that time as I remembered it’s chemistry and books from Nurul Fikri). Some people questioned my non-stop learning schedule, “aren’t you tired of those routines?”, “when could you play with your friends?”, etc. I keep running on my track. I graduated from high school, got into one of the reputable universities in my country, and of course in the major that I want.
Time flies, I still hate my birthday. But this time is different. I’m no longer afraid of my age. I’m no longer afraid of being told “old”. I gain my self-esteem because I’m the successful daughter of my parents. I can make them proud. They’re the only thing that matters in my little world.
I got my first salary at 20. I got married at 23. If I were at once afraid “how old I get when I first <…>” I will be no longer afraid. All this time I’ve been afraid being left behind. But today I’m no longer afraid. I know that everyone got their very own path and track. You can get in to school at 20 and success at 30 or you can start school from 7 and success at 50. There’s nothing define you. Age is just another number. You’re still in the same worth as who you really are. You’re still your parent’s favorite child. You’re still your good-friend’s favorite person. Nothing really matters when we talk about numbers. Know your worth is important.
