Everything I Needed to Know I Learned from IB Language and Literature Year 2

The people and memories that make up my stories 

       

     (Prepare for some very cliche very gushy blogging...and for the rest of the year) "It was the best of times it was the worst of times" (Dickens). Though this is as unoriginal as it gets, this is very accurate as to my feelings about this class and this year. Though there were many challenges, such as remembering to do my blog every other Sunday, it gave way to something really rewarding. As they say "nothing good comes easy" (another cliche). When I think back on the positives of this year, I think of them like gifts. This class gave me the gift of really learning what it meant to love to read. Though I did not love every book, each one gave me a gift of its own, even if it was just learning a new literary term to carry with me to English 101. 

     I was also unsure of what was next in my life. I was applying to colleges like a madwoman and complaining and freaking out in every outlet imaginable. Oddly enough, the moment in this class I think will last me the longest had nothing to do with literature, but an off-handed, unplanned comment on a day with about 10 students in the room. I had gotten rejected from my reach school the day before and new decisions were coming out that day. I was angry and upset, I had told myself I deserved the day to feel however I wanted. That day Mrs. Genesky reminded all of us that at the end of the day all of these things that feel so big right now will not decide if we are happy next year or at any point in the future. A little reminder that everything is what you make of it and that when you mull over something for too long, it's bound to take on a life of its own. Since this class started I could easily say that of all the teachers I had this year, I had the most respect for Mrs. G, but for her to tell us her experiences about college, which was all I could think about, openly really made the difference for me that day. Reminders that everything is going to be ok made it the best of times. 

     I was also a realistic, some might even say a pessimist. Which is why my two favorite books in this class, and probably of all time, are really interesting. Never Let Me Go was a game changer in my relationship with books. It was about me and completely not about me at the same time. Some may say it was depressing, and even I was a little depressed by the end, the book wasn't about the end. From my humble perspective (a word that I hope to use a little less after IB ends), it was about everything in between and growing up. At times, growing up had felt like the worst of times. My other favorite from this year was The Great Gatsby, which is probably the most contrasting to NLMG of the books from this year. I can truly and honestly say this book made me excited to geek out about literature everyday in class, to the point where I was even geeking out about it with Mr. Oliver in TOK. Sure, Gatsby got played, but I like to think he never regretted his choices to dream big. A good reminder that at 18 you're allowed to dream big. Which for me, just so happens to be studying English Literature in college. Gatsby, along with friends who are bound for greatness, reminded me to reach for even better times.
     This class pushed me and challenged me and made me laugh and exhausted me, but it made me a little better than when I started. I am so appreciative to my friends, classmates, and Mrs. Genesky for every memory, even if I don't remember it a year from now, those moments got me through the day. To leave in true IB English fashion, I will exit my blog with a quote. Fitzgerald says, "And so with the sunshine and the great bursts of leaves growing on the trees, just as things grow in fast movies, I had that familiar conviction that life was beginning over again with the summer.” 

 And my other favorite quote from this year :)