The Road Ahead

"Her journey has transformed her so thoroughly that she no longer fits in easily. Her change in status has left Ms. Justice a little off balance, seeing the world from two vantage points at the same time: the one she grew up in and the one she occupies now." -Class Matters: Up From the Holler

After being at Harvard for two years, I sometimes feel disconnected from the place that I call home. At times, I find myself different from the person I once was, a little less silly, a little more attune with the political correctness of things around me, a bit more mature. I feel as though I'm at a point of my life where I feel that I either have to embrace the skills and ways of life I have developed since my stay at Harvard, or to completely ignore it and go back to where I came from. Although, as previously mentioned, I do not always feel comfortable with life at Harvard, I do feel a need to allow myself the chance to become the individual I came here for. But another part of me, finds it hard to let go of the girl I once was, the person I was before coming to Harvard. I once vowed that I will never let Harvard change me, but in a way I feel that I have changed.

Do I want to go back to being that girl who barely ever spoke in proper grammar around her friends, back to a class status that I was born into, or choose a different path for myself? I chose Harvard for a reason, yet letting go of who I once was is much harder. My college experience will always be different from those of friend's back home. Most of my friends chose to go to state schools, some chose to drop out, but no matter what, their exposure to this world of class is completely different from that of mine. They will never experience that sense of elitism and exclusivity that comes along with the prestige of the Harvard name. Similar to Ms. Justice from the article, I too, can see "the world from two vantage points at the same time." But unlike her, I have to choose which path to go on with.