I was watching my new favorite show Grown-ish when Zoey Johnson, who is played by Yara Shahidi on the show, stopped to share a small moment with the viewers. She started talking about how it was expected that people in our generation achieve success by the age of 25, and how everyone is running around in college trying to figure out what they need to do in order to become the next Steve Jobs or Beyonce.
After binge-watching the entire first 8 episodes last Saturday I can objectively say that moment was one of the most relatable for me as a college student. Sadly, I remembered that Zoey Johnson was just a character and the actress behind the character the real person saying those words to me had already achieved success. Yara Shahidi is an 18-year-old actress and political activist who recently got accepted to Harvard and you’ll never believe who wrote her acceptance letter. It was MICHELLE OBAMA! I mean if anyone can say they’ve made a name for themselves at a young age it's her.
What about us normal people? Those who aren’t stunningly beautiful, extremely talented, or super smart. Are we just doomed to lead normal boring lives?
Growing up our generation was allowed to dream. We were told we could be anything we wanted to be if we just put our minds to it. Coming to college can crush some of that hope. You are constantly meeting people who seem to be doing more than you, but now's not the time to wallow in your own self-pity. I won’t lie to you and say that each and every one of you will be remembered in history, but your life never has to be normal or boring.
Life will trample us all if we allow it to, so let’s get up and make something of ourselves. Don't worry you still have time to figure things out. Just remember you got this.