Journal 27 – Write about your first day of school in kindergarten. Did it become better or worse than anticipated?
Response to – Half a Day – Naguib Mahfouz
“It’s pretty scary to know how quickly time flies”
-James Wan
I’ve chosen this quote as it represents how time moves by in an instant, as a result so much can happen in what feels like just a few hours, in reality, years and or days have gone by. On my first day of school, I had mixed emotions, I was excited to meet new people but scared of leaving my parent’s side. My parents had driven me to school, we waited outside waiting to go in, while we were given a brief introduction. Eventually, the time had come it was time to go, leaving my parent’s side was the scariest part. As time progressed my first day got better, I got along with the other kids and made new friends, the day was spent getting to know each other. I didn’t expect my first day to go well, although it did go well and I enjoyed school. I’m in grade 11 now, this day feels as if it was yesterday, my transition from kindergarten to high school felt as if it happened in a day, in reality, it’s been many years. Progressively throughout the years school has gotten worse and a lot harder. In the short story Half a Day by Naguib Mahfouz, the idea of time moving very quickly in an individual’s life is highlighted throughout the story. The narrator started his first day of school, the boy is delighted with the new clothes he is wearing for the occasion, he is apprehensive about going to school. The boy walks to school while holding his father’s hand, occasionally asking why he must go, the narrator feels as if it’s a punishment. The father tells the boy, “today you truly begin living.” Eventually, school is over and the boy steps outside and his father is not there. The narrator finds that the street and surroundings have completely changed since the morning. He is unable to cross the street due to heavy traffic a, “young lad” offers to help him across, addressing him as “Grandpa”. The little boy has passed an entire lifetime in what seemed like only half a day, this is done to highlight how quickly time moves. The narrator had enjoyed his first day of school, as time progressed he realized school is bitter, in what seemed like half a day he became a Grandpa. A lot can happen in what seems like a short amount of time but in reality, could be years. This is highlighted through the contrast of the first day of school to the modern era in which the narrator now lives. As time passed for the boy it progressively got worse due to his realization of the dryness of school and how quickly time had gone by. The narrator would think of his first day of school as if it happened yesterday. I relate to this since my first day of school feels like it was yesterday at times as well. As I got older I felt like I hadn’t lived my life to the fullest since I dwell on the past and the first day of school till this day. Sometimes I still feel like a little boy, who had gotten older in what also seemed like a short amount of time, but in reality, was many years. The quote, “today you truly begin living”, said by the father stands out to me, although this is said, the little boy did not feel as if he started to truly live. The transition from school to a grandpa in such a “short” amount of time shows how his life was wasted instead. I also feel this way, I feel like I haven’t truly started to “live” yet, since all my time is spent thinking about the past rather than focusing on the present. In conclusion, so much can happen in what seems like it was yesterday but in reality, could be years.
When an innocent and young individual is confronted with the idealistic reality of life, they will develop a unique sense of realism that revolves around a pleasant and unclouded lifestyle that generates from their naive and limited cognitive abilities at such a young age, thereby resulting in the constant acquisition of worldly and practical knowledge that is associated with the harsh realities of the environment that surrounds them as they progress throughout their adolescence and adulthood. The perspective of a child differs greatly from that of a teenager or adult. The viewpoint of a child possesses somewhat of a filter that prohibits any negative, disturbing, and harsh thoughts or truths from entering the child’s mind, which assists them in maintaining a positive and carefree outlook on life and developing an ideal version of life without any obstacles or uncertainties. However, as they grow older, that filter gets eliminated from the child’s perception. They begin to develop a true perspective and outlook on life that is primarily focused on the hurdles, obstacles, and grim realities that are revealed to them as they progress throughout different stages within their life. During each stage, they encounter varying adversities that provide them with the necessary information that they require to survive, and possibly even thrive, during that specific point in their life.
“Half A Day,” which was written by Naguib Mahfouz, explores how individuals evolve as a result of time in terms of knowledge and understanding of worldly matters and affairs. They discover and learn about themselves, human nature, and the truth about life as they walk and reveal their destined path. In the middle of the story, as the narrator describes his first day of school and what the children did that day, he said, “As our path revealed itself to us, however, we did not find it as totally sweet and unclouded as we had presumed.” The narrator mentions how his day became more difficult than he had expected as he progressed through it. The narrator’s statement, although appearing as though he is referring to how his first day of school was more challenging than he had anticipated, is, in reality, referring to how his life was harder to navigate than he had presumed as a young child, which, in turn, depicts how the narrator’s perception of his life has evolved as a result of his interpretation of time and the wisdom and worldly knowledge that he has acquired as he transitioned from youth to adolescence and adulthood. He conveys how his child-like and limited cognitive abilities and lack of worldly knowledge contributed to his self-constructed facade of a sweet, happy, and unclouded lifestyle. Furthermore, this also mirrors how Mahfouz utilized the school as an allusion to life. The journey and realities of life mirror the abilities and functions of a learning institution in many ways. In life, the narrator was taught lessons and was required to take tests that allowed him to rid himself of the false perception of an overly optimistic, carefree, and idealistic reality that he had mentally invented during his youth.
When individuals are at an age where they are, specifically, instructed to focus on the joys of their youth, they are purposefully not given information regarding how cruel and unjust the world can be. Their elders do this in an effort to protect the younger generations from the harsh realities of the world. This protection is necessary in order to guard children’s innocent minds and allow them to grow without the unnecessary fear of life frightening them at such a young age. The quality of innocence that all children possess acts as a shield that protects them from the truth, hurdles, and obstacles that life presents. They only perceive life as a perfect world that contains endless possibilities and opportunities that are going to make them fulfilled and content, which can be seen when children say that they wish to grow up to be a “princess” or a “knight in shining armour.” However, as they grow older, their innocence starts to fade as they are confronted with obstacles and numerous truths of the harsh realities of life that greatly conflict with what they believed to be true at the time of their youth. All individuals walk the path that is destined for them. The path starts from their birth and stops at the end of their life, which is what society refers to as the journey of life. The path becomes harder to navigate as young individuals grow older. What seemed like an easy and straightforward road evolves into a twisted maze where directions don’t make sense. This process occurs as a result of the filter and shield of innocence fading as individuals progress into adolescence and adulthood.
Within this continuously modernizing and evolving society, children are often exposed to platforms that indirectly or directly influence their perception of reality, which assists them in constructing their utopian universe, in which nothing can go wrong or unplanned. It is a world with a happy and content atmosphere and endless positive and exciting possibilities and opportunities. By exposing young children to several cartoons and stories that are fixated upon having a “happy ending” and unrealistic expectations for life, society contributes to the shaping of the innocent and naive minds of children. Due to the fact that children are constantly witnessing and hearing stories and fairy-tales about fictional characters, they develop a false perception of reality that eliminates the element of authenticity. Young individuals begin to believe that their lives will also be based upon the foundation of a “happily ever after” storyline, mirroring how everything will fall into place at the end and they will never experience any misgivings throughout their entire lives, which, as they will eventually come to know as a result of time, is unrealistic and, what older generations might refer to as, delusional. However, it is not considered delusional or abnormal for a child to believe this due to their lack of worldly knowledge and limited cognitive abilities. They are human beings that have been protected from the painful and unpleasant experiences and realities of the environment that surrounds them. Nevertheless, as they grow older and begin to reflect upon their past experiences and mindset, it is only then that they may think that they were delusional or ridiculous.
As an individual with a very active imagination as a child, I also imagined life as a very easy and simple experience that would be full of wonderful surprises and events that would be enjoyable experiences. I was always such a happy little girl who loved to smile and make the best out of every situation. Like most children, I did not understand what it meant to be stressed or upset over an actual matter of concern. Although it is true that each age has its own stress levels and problems, the stress levels of a child differ greatly from that of a teenager or adult. Children are mostly concerned about irrelevant things, such as if they missed their favourite cartoon, if they forgot to bring something to their friend’s house, or if they are given a small punishment for misbehaving. This is what allows them to construct their unique sense of reality that is driven by the thought of a sweet and pleasant lifestyle. As a child, I would watch my parents, my older siblings, and my older cousins go about their daily lives as teenagers, young adults, and adults, which allowed a sense of excitement in me to arise at the thought of how much fun it would be when I grew up. Like most little girls, I loved to watch Disney princess movies and “happily ever after” storylines. I used to imagine life as having a similar outcome. However, I soon realized that my elders had created a bubble around me that blocked off all grim realities and truths of life. That bubble disappeared when I became older. I soon acknowledged that the “happily ever after” that my parents, siblings, and cousins were living was merely a facade that they were portraying before my eyes. In reality, behind all of the luxury and celebrations, they were devoted to their work or education, which allowed them to prosper throughout their lives. I only saw their happiness, laughter, and their enjoyment of life. I never witnessed their sacrifices or the potent devotion towards their work and furtherment of their education. This acted as the filter that protected my innocence and prevented me from learning the harsh and stressful realities of life.
As I grew older and my workload from school increased, I directed all of my focus towards my assignments and other schoolwork. I soon realized that I had to work for my “happily ever after” and happiness. I realized that it was much more difficult and challenging than I had anticipated. I walked my destined path, and I can say, with certainty and utmost confidence, that it was not easy to navigate at all. This path was confusing and full of twists and turns. Previously, I had assumed that the journey of life was completely straightforward. Unfortunately, I was sadly mistaken. In fact, I am still walking this path, and I am positive that there are many obstacles that will come along as I reach every destination. However, I will learn to deal with and overcome those obstacles as my worldly and practical knowledge grows and evolves as a result of time. During my youth, my sense of reality was shaped by what my elders portrayed before me, which resulted in me developing a sense of realism that was based upon a pleasant and unclouded lifestyle that was fueled by my innocent and limited cognitive abilities at such a young age. Moreover, as I progressed throughout the different stages of my life, my interpretation of life evolved as a result of my acquisition of worldly and practical knowledge regarding the harsh and grim realities and truths of the environment and world that I reside in.
Literature that I am responding to: “Half A Day” written by Naguib Mahfouz.
Journal entry #26 quote response: “As our path revealed itself to us, however, we did not find it as totally sweet and unclouded as we had presumed.”
