What The Biology Teacher Said To Me

I woke up this morning by an abundance of bright sunlight aiming directly at my defenseless face skin and a disturbing yellow light on the right coming from the floor lamp I forgot to switch last night off. I check my phone, fearing someone maybe is looking for me, and we all know this is bad news for a Monday morning. As is a Monday morning as a whole. Nobody’s there. Phew… But someone pays a visit in my conscious. It’s Dr. Poppy K., and she didn’t come empty-handed, she brought me a memory. How thoughtful!

During high school years, I was privileged enough to receive extra private lessons in my afternoons. At one such semi-private, biology session the teacher wanted to demonstrate how to extract DNA out of an onion. So the rest of the “class” and I, namely three persons, stood up from the dining table in the living room and headed for Dr. Poppy’s kitchen table, which was right on the left, six feet away. As I walk towards the kitchen lab, I find my way obstructed by numerous chairs. And what do I do? I bypass them and finally join the experiment. Dr. Poppy looks at me and says: “I see what you did there, you don’t overcome hurdles, you avoid them.”

But at least I made it to the experiment, didn’t I?

Long story short, I have entirely forgotten how to isolate onion DNA, but I remember these words every time I choose to give up waiting in a queue or find dog litter on my walking path, even when I have to “log in to continue.” Is this really who I am? I avoid difficulties? I avoid life? Or did her words caused this to me? Was I gaslighted?

But it’s time to get up and drink the coffee. Loads of it. Because it’s Monday, and I’d rather avoid it.