Welcome to an age of numbers; algebra and calculus and geometry. Oddly enough, there is more than just math to these numbers. There are ‘likes’ on a picture, grades on a test, amount of friends a person can latch onto, numbers on a scale, and even age. Society worries so greatly about these numbers that they often forget about the actual person themselves.
When I was eight years old, I stepped onto the scale for the first time. I did not do it to see what I weighed or to even see the number; I just wanted to watch the little arm move from point A to point B. Now ten years later I get on that scale not to watch the little arm move, but the watch the automated numbers pop up. I am afraid of these numbers. I am 18 years old and afraid of numbers on a scale. An unknown author once said “Feast on the corpses of the men who do this to our daughters,” referring to the pain and anguish that is thrown upon women, and even men, who are expected to look a certain way with their weight. Some would say that the prominence of weight in our society is a ‘good’ thing, and that the girls should ‘get in shape’ and ‘stay in shape.’ Is it worth is though? Is breaking down a girl’s ability to eat or even keep food down for a number worth a number? Am I worth an automated number on a scale?
Freshman year of high school I witnessed my brother drop out of college because his test scores were not ‘good enough.’ The most intelligent person I knew had to move back in with his family because he did not test the right way, and did not do exactly as the college expected him to. That year I failed my first test, and then failed another, and yet another. I knew exactly what the material was and exactly what I needed to do, but I had created my own testing anxiety. The tests began to scare me; this began to anger my parents.
“You are better than this, you can do more than what you are doing,” they would yell.
They proceeded to ground me, and once again my self-worth became a number. Most people would look at this number and decide about the person as a whole. The person’s grade point average is all that matters. The schooling system refuses to get to know the actual child, they want to know the person’s test score, and for what else but money. Schools and parents alike no longer get to know the child; they get to know their GPA.
Instagram, Twitter, Facebook. All of these are based on ‘likes,’ ‘favorites,’ or ‘retwteets’ and how many a person can receive. Not only does that matter, but also how many ‘friends’ or ‘followers’ a person can gain will affect online popularity. Now-a-days having a million real life friends is worth little to nothing. A person also has to have a million online ‘friends’ or ‘followers’ to be able to make it big anymore. The more online ‘friends’ and ‘followers’ a person has, the better a person they are, right? Wrong. There is nothing about the internet that makes someone a better person. There is nothing about having a million and one friends that allows a person to be a better person. Someone with only two friends may actually be the best person in the entire world. As a society though, we tend to shun those who are not like us. The amazing thing is though, life is not based on the amount of the group, but the beauty of the group.
I have a friend who is a mere 16, and her whole life is based upon how young she is. All of her friends, including me, are two years older than her and are capable of much more. It sounds like such a small issue, but people worry so much about age that they forget to worry about the actual person. One may say that it does matter when a 15 year old young girl is dating a 20 year old man. This is true, but once she is 20, and he is 25, does it make a difference? It is about the person’s experience and life lessons learned not their number. It is said that “nobody grows old merely by living a number of years. We grow old by deserting our ideals. Years may wrinkle the skin, but to give up enthusiasm wrinkles the soul.” (Samuel Ullman) Age does not determine who a person is. It is determined upon how they learn, and what they learn.
With all the numbers controlling the world, there is no telling what else is going to pop up and start ruling society next. Take some advice from a girl with a high number on the scale, low number in the grade book, and a minute amount of ‘friends’ or ‘followers.’ It is not about the number, it is about the heart.
