There is something to be said about preparedness. What it is exactly, at this point, I don't know... but I know there must be something. After all, aren't we taught all our lives to follow little golden rules of preparedness? Gosh. One rule that immediately springs to mind is: Do your homework. Why? Why, do people have such a hard time with this one? Literally and figuratively it seems to me that we are swiftly becoming a nation of bumbling, fly by the seat-of-our pants - idiots.
Take for example, a college class that I am currently enrolled in. I am an English major, not to mention a freelance writer. As such take my writing classes extremely seriously. This particular class requires a good deal of research for writing analytical essays on the literary fiction we are studying this term. Of course, research translates to citing various sources. So, anyway, there is this one girl, um, wait... girl is an inappropriate description, as this girl is probably in her mid 30's. Anyway, put delicately, this young woman is driving me nuts!
First, she is often late for this class. She blusters in, loudly, I might add. Hey, I could live with that - but for the fact that no matter where I sit in the room - she weasels her way either right next to me, or across from me, or worse - behind me. It's moderately bothersome, but I could still tolerate that, were it not for the fact that she then proceeds to address me with whispered questions. She'll ask what she missed, or if I did the reading assignment - I mean - DUH!!! I didn't become an "A" student by blowing off my reading assignments.
Regardless, it gets worse. She is forever fielding me questions about her written assignments. I feel for her in a way. She is, after all, to be counted among the walking clueless of the world. Blissfully unaware of how ignorant and tactless she appears to others.
So, good person that I am, I try to help her here and there. I offer advice. I have even gone so far as to edit a draft of one of her essays at her request. Mercifully, I have taken courses taught by my current professor previously. She had definitely noticed my unease at being targeted by this classmate as her personal tutor. She has tolerated the disruption up to this point, but I know the unprepared student is in for a rude awakening if it continues.
I have tried to distance myself. This week, after class my classmate approached and asked if we could exchange telephone numbers, you know - in case she had questions about the upcoming research paper. I was aghast. No. Not going to happen. I explained that I am an extremely busy writer, student and single parent. That while I do not mind helping her from time to time, I cannot spare a moment on work that is not my own. I told her, and honestly so, that I am lucky that I manage to get my own work done.
Well, she became frustrated and pushed the issue. After all, she only has a few questions and surely I can take a few minutes to help her out. Then she blurted that I should help her because writing is easy for me. EASY! Pardon? What say?
She said it in the same accusatory way that former coworkers have in the past. The ones who assumed that I would pen their reports for them because writing came easy for me. Friends who have needed help sprucing up a resume, would offer a similar tone, when they would promise me that it would only take a few minutes. After all, writing was hard for them. But not me. It's easy for me.
My professor glanced up from stacking papers on her desk. She had taken notice of the exchange between myself and my unprepared classmate. Part of me wanted to humiliate this girl, by informing her just how much work goes into writing well, and do so in front of our professor who undoubtedly understands the complexities to which I refer . But I thought better of it.
What I did instead was suggest that she seek out the free services of the tutoring lab. I assured her that writing comes easy for them too, and that they would be pleased to spend as much time helping her as she might need, so that next time she might come to class prepared. She left in a bit of a huff.
My professor didn't say a word about it, but the approving look she gave me was enough.
Tomorrow we have a quiz on two short stories that were assigned a week ago. Afterward, we will have open discussion, analyzing the works. Then we will shift gears and review twenty research questions that we should have completed with sources cited on a separate page. Invariably, there will be a few students who "forgot" to do the reading assignment, or perhaps one or two scrambling to complete the research questions.
All I know is that I have done my homework. Then again, writing comes easy for me.
