Competition within families can be a good way to bond. It makes being stuck at home much more bearable. We always try to pick sides in a show, especially to figure out who the villain is. Lighthearted arguments can be fun, but debates become exciting when they become serious. I have not been interested in politics, but since my brother has been arguing with my parents more and more, it forced me to become very involved. Luckily my family never holds grudges against each other and can agree to disagree.
My family has learned over time that being competitive is something that makes our family bond more than anything, however, there is one thing I hate being competitive with: school. I am pretty indifferent to school debate, as it is not as personal to me. It seems as if it's family against family, a game of chess where the parents are the players, and their kids the pawns. That statement may be a bit of an exaggeration, but it still occasionally establishes a toxic environment at the dinner table. In this game, I certainly feel like an insignificant piece on the board.My parents, aunts, and uncles love to showcase their children's accomplishments. While they may deny their competitiveness, they obviously show it. One of my cousins was even the valedictorian of her school. This is just one example of the high-level gameplay that I am experiencing. Of course, I'm proud of her, but obviously, I'm extremely envious. Another cousin got a 1590 on his SATs (the max being 1600). My brother had a perfect GPA and was in the top 5% of his class. Yes, my brother is on my “team,” but he overshadows me by a lot.
I have accomplishments I am proud of. For example, I am very proud to reach high honor roll. As if not everyone else on the board has reached high honor roll. This feeling of being on the bottom creates an enormous amount of pressure. But I have to say, If I wasn't in this game, on the board, I would have a big problem with my motivation. Thinking about it now, I'm sure I'm the only one who actually cares about this “game.” My parents are very proud of me and believe in me. That is what is important to me. My cousins and I are super close too. Overall, I'm glad I have something like this to motivate me. But it would be really nice to win this game.
I understand the pressure that you're feeling. I used to be very competitive with everything and jealous of my cousins who had either achieved more or had done better in high school than I'm doing now. Though it can be really motivating to compete, I've learned that sometimes it's better to try your best and not to compare yourself to others.
ReplyDeleteI really like the way you've woven your thinking about school pressure into a metaphor of a game. I also really appreciate how these blog posts have helped me get to know you a little better.
ReplyDeleteOops. I just realized that I'm signed into chrome from my personal google account, and apparently my avatar on here is me with Rex at the Art of Animation resort in Disney LOL
ReplyDeleteI relate to this type of competitiveness also. Both of my siblings have always gotten higher grades then me, although I use to get competitive with them, but I realized that we both have strengths and weaknesses, and I probably have some strenghs they dont have, and some weaknesses they dont have.
ReplyDeleteI understand exactly how you feel. Me and my brother make competitions out of everything and its annoying feeling like I am falling behind. I understand now that we are each different people with our own skills and talents.
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