Personal Reflection: Experience that Changed Responsibility

Personal experience that impacted a change in my personal responsibility

Growing up, I have found my adolescent age very interesting and easy all the while. This is because of the care and love I received from my parents. The story changed when I was 12, I was enrolled into a boarding school where I was a bit separated from my parents and siblings. Even though that was painful, but it was a necessary separation that launched me to the life of independence and self-sustainability as I grew up. It was rather challenging because all of what it came with was entirely new to me for me to come to cope with.

On September 2000, when I was introduced to the system, on resumption day I felt the world has just ended for me. I was assigned a space in the hostel where I am expected to Keep and care for my things amidst strangers who later became my friends. I never knew how to put my things in shape, I never knew how to care for my laundries, how to wake up early and follow stipulated programs, it was all terrific for me under the promptings of the house master who never stopped till we get it the way they desired.

All the memories of freedom I enjoyed at home kept on reverberating and leading me to deep nostalgia. But gradually, I started picking up one by one, step by step. I learnt a number of new things at space of time which my mates on regular non-broaden school could not learn. First of all, the sense of personal hygiene and cleanliness made a lasting impression on me because of our house masters who are meant to teach by doing it themselves as we observe. They dress on white on daily basis as we equally do. The use of white fabrics is very difficult to maintain but on daily bases we put on day dresses. A white shirt, upon a white singlet with white underwear and trousers. We were meant to have three pairs and wash them whenever they get stained they were daily dressing code, we were meant to take care of them properly, else we attract punishments. It was so difficult going through it in my adolescent. I found it painful then but looking back on how it has helped me, I remained grateful of the training.

The hardest part of the training for me was waking up as early as 5 a.m and going to bed buy 20:30 p.m. it was the daily  regulation, it was hard to comprehend but looking at how the older students have gotten to coped with it made it easier for us to queue in. we had fixed times for studiers and no one was exempted apart from grave circumstances like health issues. The regulations were followed strictly but it gave me a platform for being punctual, committed to my duties and faithful to appointments, it also made me to learn how to be faithful; to meal regulations of 7,1,7.  We go for preps twice daily on weekdays and once over the weekend. One of the difficulties was being disposed to study when it is the time according to the regulation. It made no sense to me then. Gradually I learnt how to be disposed and take real control of my disposition. We take our meals of fixed times; breakfast at 7a.m, lunch at 1p.m and super at 7p.m. The eating habit I maintain today was from the training I gained from my school.

Base on feeding, we were prohibited from eating in-between meals especially at night. During the day we do take snacks during recreation times. I got my table manners from the school. I never knew much about it prior to the training. Average Nigerian families do not eat together in dining rooms but separately. I learnt how to combine the fork and knife in eating at table, and all of those things made no meaning to me initially until I have the opportunity to mingle with people with high reputation. One other thing I will ever be thankful about is the painful training I got was on how to handle pocket money. Every individual was not expected to keep more than N,5000,  yet we mere expected not to borrow, or call for financial assistance due to lack apart from extreme cases of incurred health bills. It was really difficult for some who have been exposed to wild spending manner and it curtailed living above ones means. I appreciate the training, although it was painful, discipline in no measure is not, but it shapes my ability to fit in and compete favorably with others. These are the experiences that shaped me and got me prepared by launching me into adulthood with a sense of independence and self-sustainability.