I spent most of high school doing activities and clubs that didn’t interest me, or simply sitting out of them altogether. Until senior year, the majority of my activities bored me, or didn’t align with who I was. For four years, there was a constant voice in the back of my head, wondering what would go on my college application. I wanted the ten slots to be filled perfectly, creating the ideal image of a well-rounded, balanced and outstanding student, someone good on paper.
College applications aren’t just a concern of upperclassmen, but follow us through our entire high school careers. Sometimes, it feels like all we’re working toward is college, and everything that we do in high school has to somehow add to that application. With that in mind, sophomore year, I joined activities, several clubs and played violin in an orchestra outside of school. It was then that I joined The Evanstonian, but that year I only wrote three times. All the activities I was involved in, I did very little, while being assured that they would pad my résumé.
Junior year was much of the same, but I ended up quitting a club I’d been uninterested in and getting a job instead. I was lost on what I wanted to do with my free time, much less my future career, which pressed on me more and more as college applications approached. I felt behind. My friends always seemed to have something going on, whether it was sports, dance or a club they really loved; it seemed like they all had a purpose or talent, while I went home every day after school, lacking a calling.
Towards the end of junior year, I volunteered at the Evanston History Center with a friend to get community service hours for the National Honor Society, as the deadline was rapidly approaching and I needed hours quickly. The experience was different than I expected, but I loved it, and asked about internship opportunities. I felt like I’d found something that didn’t just check a box, but actually spoke to what I wanted to do with my life.
Since I was young, I’d been fascinated with history, but was often told that a career in history would require me to become a professor and get my PhD, and still, I wouldn’t make enough money for it to be ‘worth it.’ However, the staff at the Evanston History Center disproved this; in fact, none of them had a PhD or had taught at a university, and many had taken unusual paths to end up where they were now.
After a short 4-day internship, I was sold, and soon after, I started leading tours through the Dawes House, the Evanston History Center’s headquarters.
Every Saturday, I lead tours through the home, teaching others all the knowledge I’ve gained on both Charles Dawes and the home. However, as a newcomer, I often have gaps in my knowledge, which the other guides will happily jump in to fill. Over the many, many Saturdays I’ve spent at the Dawes House, including frigid winter days with no visitors at all, I’ve gotten to know the other docents, accumulating hours of conversation with people who’ve dedicated their lives to history.
If I’m being honest, I do wish I’d started volunteering sooner, but this last year has been an incredible experience for me, and as someone who never felt particularly called to something, it made me feel like I was doing something that mattered. Sure, it didn’t hurt my résumé, but it wasn’t about that. I liked what I did, and being surrounded by others who did too made me love it even more.
In high school, it can feel like we are just preparing for the next step, striving for the grades, the awards and the extracurriculars, all to get us into the college of our dreams (or at least the one we think is.) I can’t say I didn’t fall into this trap, or that you shouldn’t try to get good grades, but finding something that you’re passionate about will make you so much happier than joining a club or sport just because you feel like you should.
