EDITORIAL | Ang Buhay ay Karera: The Blues of a College Student

"Huwag mag-alala, buhay ay 'di karera." We often sing this line when confronted with pressure, deadlines, and identity crises. College is a journey where we can discover ourselves and explore life’s realities even more. But because of the expectations that we set for ourselves or set by our own families; the journey becomes a race.

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Have you felt the feeling of having to do something great in order to catch up with your schoolmates? Do you feel like you are running out of time to achieve greater things? Have you ever compared yourself to students of your age and thought that you were lagging behind?

Did you ask yourself once: Am I in a race?

  One of the reasons why Karera by Bini is a hot-to-go song is that the lyrics are in synch with what most students feel. Some of us grow tired of hearing the lines "Buti pa si ano...", "Yung anak ni...", and "Paano naman ako?" coming from ourselves and other people. And admit it or not, it all boils down to one cause— we are afraid to be left behind.

  The goal of college education is to develop literate and career-ready adults who can solve problems by sound reasoning and effective communication (GIETU, 2021). Based on what has been said, does the statement imply that college is a race? If you think that it is, you might as well gear up and buckle up your seatbelt. But if you believe otherwise, we sing like BINI, "Hindi naman ito karera, puwedeng magdahan-dahan.”

  The information going around on Twitter about adolescents having an undeveloped prefrontal cortex, responsible for negative emotions and identity crises, is actually a fact. The National Institute of Mental Health in 2023 discussed that adolescent years are vital for brain development as the prefrontal cortex, one of the last parts of the brain, is reaching its full maturity. This area is in control of decision-making, organizing, and planning. This explains why most of us are still prone to mistakes and failures, even though we are already in college.

  To top that off, the American Psychological Association (n.d.) claims that students from higher socioeconomic backgrounds are more susceptible to attaining their career aspirations due to accessible resources, familial experience with higher education, and significant social factors. It is worth noting that we have different backgrounds and privileges, wherefore some are fortunate to do “this” and some fail to do “so.” That being said, we can reject the idea of "Kung kaya niya, kaya ko rin" because if we come from a marginalized or a low middle-class family, hindi lahat ng kaya ng iba ay kaya natin agad-agad. And from that thinking, we can be more compassionate to ourselves, which will enable us to take steps little by little.

  Comparing ourselves to others makes us humans. It is normal to come across those paradoxes and reflect on them. Psychological research proves that social comparison can have a major influence on one's self-perception and well-being (Wharton Neuroscience Initiative, n.d.). However, it can make us feel bad or more bolstered to create goals. Thus, reality-checking and being compassionate to ourselves is still the better option.

"Hingang malalim lang at tandaan, ika'y may hawak ng iyong hakbang"

  Every person can be the turtle in the story of The Rabbit and The Turtle. Because of the aforementioned reasons, some of us will get to experience being the turtle, slowly walking our way towards our goal, and it is safe to say that it is all right for everything to start with a small step. Anyhow, college is supposed to be a journey; it should be a race of turtles, not pretend horses trying to get ahead of each other.

  We can cry and fail. We can rest. If our laptops need to be shut down before an upgrade, why not us? Are we in a race? Only you can answer that. If comparing your life makes you inspired, go ahead. But if it opts you to live a negative life, come to think of it.

  After all, it is important to remember that we have different lives, environments, and socioeconomic backgrounds. Some doors may open for some but may be closed for you...Or it will reopen for you at the right time. Feeling the pressure and overwhelming emotions coming from external factors makes us human. Finally, it is already given that life is full of ups and downs, but the vision is ours to see— we can just thrive or strive to replace the song Karera with I Feel Good someday.