In seventh grade, my friends came up with a nickname for me. They called me a “natural.” At first, I took it as a compliment, until they explained it better.
Where did this stem from? They said I was a natural at everything, but not good enough at one specific thing to get my namesake from. My other friends were dubbed artistic, smart, or good at a specific sport or instrument. I had done martial arts, gymnastics, soccer, skating, music lessons—but I never stuck with them. At a young age, I used to bury myself in books, but as homework piled up, I lost time and interest in reading.
During that moment and in the years following, I felt passionless. People around me seemed to have found their passions at a younger age. For them, it seemed to be effortlessly easy to fall in love with something, take part in a shared passion.
So, I stuck my head in my books and accepted my passionless existence. Little did I know that in doing so, I was actively working at something I didn’t think could be a passion: gaining an education.
Everyone can agree that Olympians are passionate about their sport. But how much blood, sweat, and tears did it take to become the most passionate people at their sport?
Today, I have many passions. I am a passionate about journalism. I am passionate about my education. I am passionate about baking. I am passionate about weight lifting. I am passionate about being a club leader. I am passionate about the law.
I started to read again. Not particularly challenging or classic books, but books I enjoyed and could tackle on top of schoolwork and life.
I am not the best journalist, student, baker, gym-goer, club leader, legal assistant, or reader. I am passionate about these things because I work at them. I wake up everyday and continue to keep pursuing my passions.
I make a conscious decision every morning to continue the course and keep on fighting for my passions. If I told you it was easy, I would be dishonest.
There are many times when I cry into my textbooks, curse a story for not turning out the way I wanted it to, get frustrated because my lifts plateau in the gym, or cry because the icing on the cake wasn’t going on smooth enough.
But it’s worth it because I have passion.
So if you are ever wondering whether you are living a passionless existence, I urge you to look a little harder. To try harder to achieve the goals you want to achieve. To commit yourself everyday to your passions.