Exceptional Mediocrity

With the HSC final exams getting so close there’s a lot of talk about ridiculous marks kids are aiming for. Kids with bright plans for their futures, a goal they’re aiming for and they’re gonna work damn hard for. I’m not one of them.

I don’t know what I want to do yet, and I’m not uncomfortable with that. I first had this thought when I was given my art rank for the end of internal assessment marking, “equal 34/35″. Was I disappointed? Hell no. I’m not upset with myself or regretful for not trying harder, I realise I play a very important part in the equilibrium of school students. I’m one of the brave – the courageous, I’m exceptionally mediocre.

Bravo to the guy who got 1/35 for art, but how would he have done that if there weren’t 34 other kids who didn’t get a mark as high as his? He wouldn’t have. The concept of his success was only affirmed by the fact that 34 other kids didn’t have that same success. I have no doubt he is more talented in art and probably worked harder than the others, but what he achieved means nothing until compared to what we didn’t achieve. And so can be said for the rest of life, any activity, any context.

You think getting a medal in the Olympics is impressive if there’s only 3 people in the event? Nobody remembers the people who got silver, bronze, 4th, and all the others below them. But without them there’d be no feat for the winner to celebrate and be remembered for. The saying “there’s always someone better than you” is completely true, but I think there should also be a saying; “there’s always people who are way worse than you”. You can’t be good at something until a lot of other people are worse, and you can’t be bad at something until a lot of others are better than you. The idea of skill and superiority is only measured in comparison to others. So to me, world class athletes, billionaires, kids who get 100uai and other ‘established’ people are no more important than the unemployed guy who sits on the couch watching tv all day who IN COMPARISON makes these other guys look successful.

I was watching a James Bond movie recently where he shot many, many generic nameless henchmen on his way through the mission. These thugs aren’t remembered, they’re only tools to show how superior James Bond is to the average man. Their whole existence is to reaffirm how good someone else is, and that, is how I (and many others) exist/existed in school.