A Son's View

In my philosophy class—a fourth quarter senior elective death trap of concentration and effort—we are learning about identity. We are asked the question, “What are your essential qualities?”—or what qualities about Jacob make Jacob the person that the people around me know?

“Being a licensed driver, being a legal U.S citizen and proud owner of a Joe Mauer giveaway bat,” I joked in an effort to draw a chuckle from my neighbor.

Obviously these things are not crucial to my makeup, and I would still go on living a basically normal life (although not being an American citizen would be a significant change).

But when I began to think about it and the topic of my next article, I realized that my parents are responsible for many of my defining characteristics.

Now, you certainly will not see me with my shirt tucked in and a belt on at 9 pm like my dad, and I will never be caught making the strange “woo-hooing” noise that my mother gets a lot of grief over. Besides those things, many of my finest attributes can be linked to my parents.

I consider myself someone who puts great passion into the things I do, much like my parents. Our passions however are what separate us. While my parents are devout Catholics who commit their time to bettering their faith life, I prefer to devote my passion to sports, music and books.

Unfortunately, the time that I want to spend pursuing my own passions often comes into conflict with the ideals that my parents wish to instill in me.  They have always helped me pursue my passions but always with the mindset that I should pursue these things within their constraints.

I have always seen it is as beneficial to have guiding forces to direct me as I develop and grow as a person. But for the past several months, I have been anxious to see what I can do under my own supervision.  For me, the transition from home to college is not simply one of geographic or educational movement, but one of movement toward independence as well.

My parents have shaped me into, hopefully, a capable, respectable young man, and the shape that my life has taken will be one that will not only please my parents but also be fulfilling of my aspirations.

In my college search, I knew that I wanted to get away from my home in order to branch out and test my surroundings with as much independence as I could find. In moving to Kansas I will be 479.80 miles away from my family and home.

It can be a touchy subject to tell your parents you want to move away from them and understandably so. They have provided care and support for 18 years, and my sister and I are their greatest investment.

However, I am not moving away from them to alienate them from my life. If anything, I will be able to develop a new understanding and appreciation for the things I have learned and what I gained in my time here. The saying is, you don’t know what you’ve got ‘til it’s gone.

I will still be learning from what my parents have taught me because I will notice the changes that I will have to adapt to. Once I can learn their lessons for myself and understand their value by my own recognition, I will have finally truly inherited my parent’s knowledge.