Gifted; January 21 2026

I think I’m off to a rocky start on this semester. I don’t feel behind, exactly, but the required reading alone has me exhausted. I’m more tired than I have been. I’m not nodding off in class or anything, but I feel it bone-deep. It sucks.

Even so, I’m looking forward to most of my classes – I’ve altered my mindset a little and I’m less afraid to get things wrong, outside of tests. Being wrong is part of learning.

I was one of those Gifted Kids in school, and as any Gifted Kid will tell you, getting something wrong is terrifying. Your self-worth, self-image, is tied up in your ability to excel.

University isn’t a competition, though. Granted, I was only ever really competing with myself – the idealized genius version of me – but university really is about the learning, not the grades.

I didn’t do as well grade-wise last term as I’d hoped. That’s okay! I still learned and have a foundation for what they’re teaching me now. That’s the actual point. I get it now.

Now if only I could get enough rest and start writing another book and have some leisure time and study…