By Shira Kramer, Managing Editor
Like hundreds of high schoolers, I took AP U.S. History (APUSH). The class was a two year course that covered so much information, I often felt like my head might explode. Our teacher was a former football coach who lined his classroom walls with inspirational quotes. Every day for two years, he would walk into class and say, “You guys are the best and the brightest” and “You can do hard things.” Admittedly, I often went along with these mantras without really internalizing them. That might be why, at the end of those two years, I failed the exam.
Four years later, I tried my hardest to forget any trace of APUSH and that particular type of high school torture. At 20 years old, I knew in my mind that I had the capacity for greatness. I wanted to eat better, exercise more and study harder. Every day, I told myself I would start to do these things soon.
Last month, I stood at a crossroads between comfort and challenge. I went on a group tour to Peru with my dad. Our days were packed with different activities, from shopping to sight seeing. Additionally, we spent a lot of time at the Cusco Chabad where we ate authentic Peruvian food. Yet, the high elevation made me feel sick for the majority of the trip and I was constantly checking my Apple Watch to monitor my heart rate. Any chance we had to sit down was a blessing. On the fourth day, we stood at the bottom of a mountain that was probably an Incan temple at some point in history. On my left, there was a shady area with some nice-looking benches; on my right, three girls who were evidently sick; and right in front of me was the entrance to climb the mountain.
I began to walk to the shady side on the left with my dad and some of the older participants on our group tour. Excited about the prospects of snuggling up to a wild alpaca, I rushed to the shade. However, it occurred to me that if I didn’t take this opportunity to climb the mountain now, there would never be another one. I wasn’t going to be twenty again. I wasn’t going to be in Peru again. Suddenly, I heard my APUSH teacher’s voice in my head, “You can do hard things, Shira.”
I was empowered. Turning around quickly, I raced up the first few steps at the base of the mountain. In my dash to catch up with the other hikers in my group, I forgot to tell my dad where I was going and more importantly, I forgot to take water.
As I caught up with my group, the tour coordinator told me to focus on each step in front of me and not on the bigger picture. This was the opposite of the typical “don’t look down” advice one is usually given.
With each step, I desperately needed hydration and oxygen. The elevation was increasing and I was scared I would end up like those girls I’d seen when I first arrived at this spot. Determined to keep going, I took slow breaths and borrowed water from other members of my group. I repeated my mantra over and over. Even as we approached the top of the mountain, I still wanted to turn around.
Then, I imagined what later that day would look like. I knew that if I gave up, I wouldn’t think much of it in the moment. However, if I finished, I would be on a high for the rest of my trip. On that last step, a sense of pride and exhaustion swept over me. While we only rested at the top of the mountain for a few minutes, I loved every second of it. The way down the mountain wasn’t as easy as I anticipated because I forgot to calculate the toll the elevation would play on my descent.
When I finished the trek, I felt a wave of immense pride; I couldn’t believe I had climbed that mountain. While this mountain was something that I conquered within a couple of hours on vacation, I realized that not every task I commit to yields fast results.
In the beginning of the summer, many people make goals for themselves. The summer is full of possibilities. However, this optimism that we feel towards the summer should be the same effort we put towards the beginning of the school year as well.
The school year is here and with that, it’s time to put all of our goals into action. There is no more “one month away” or “I still have two more weeks.” The time is now. Whether you’re hunkering down to study for an exam or striving to excel at extracurricular activities, it’s go time. Luckily for us, the chaggim will be here before we know it. I’m ready to push through and see where my hard work takes me. I hope that we can take this journey together.
Photo Credit: Shira Kramer