Irene: «Believe us, guys! Always believe in it, in yourself and in others “

I am a “differently young” student. I decided to go back to attend your older sister, the University, after years of neglect and precarious jobs. I had a lot of time available and I said to myself that yes, it was time to complete a journey that had begun many years ago. I finished my bachelor’s degree, and I continued to work … always as a precarious one, navigating through a thousand jobs more or less inherent in my school process.

Then came the Coronavirus, the “lockdown” and forced segregation between the four walls of the home, with days that were all the same and difficult, because as a precarious I was not entitled to economic aid.

Then the summer, a bit of freedom, the chance to work again, a glimmer of normality and then closure again. And there I said to myself: «Ok, you will stay at home again… you can study again and it will take two plus two to those three years of university. Lessons are remote. You will save money and time by not having to go to the classroom. Take advantage of it!“. And so I did.

And here I am behind a screen taking notes. The classmates now no longer see me: I am also an icon on the screen with my initials written in capital letters. They no longer call me “Lady” as they did a few years ago in front of the coffee machine in the hall or in the classroom, when I was looking for a place to sit. I no longer hear them agree to go for an aperitif on Friday “in that nice and cheap place where they also play live”. I don’t see their worried faces in the corridor, in front of the classroom where the exam is to be taken. I don’t see them holding their seats in the study room. I don’t see them laughing together after that exam that “oh, what luck! He asked me the right questions and I did it !! ».

And I wonder how much these kids are missing of which I could be aunt (maybe mother too!). When I was their age and strolled through those same corridors I made friends that still today, after many years, accompany me day by day. The college years are so beautiful, but they have been deprived of it. And nobody seems to care. Because really the University never talks about it.

I hope that all this ends soon and that my classmates can return to excite me, bringing me back to that time when everything seemed possible! Believe it, guys! Always believe in it, in yourself and in others, confident and optimistic. Life will put you in front of “complicated” moments, perhaps even more than this which now seems insurmountable. But don’t be discouraged. Stop for a moment, look up, straighten your back, take a deep breath and move on.

Always!

With love,

your aunt-colleague Irene

You can send your letter to the school at: [email protected]. The letters are published in the special Dear School, I am writing to you …