Drew Taggart

People aren't that kind to me.

at least in the ways that I've heard other people like think through these things.

I mean, obviously I've got extraordinary friends and people in my life, but I guess if I had to like, I was trying to think of like a clever way to answer this because funny enough, I think it was an unkind thing.

I had this homeroom advisor in sixth grade named Mrs. Park.

I think she liked me, but I think she also understood that I was at this really interesting crossroads in my life.

My dad had just passed away.

He's 12 years old, super young, impressionable age as a young boy.

I had a lot of friends, but I was also not like a banging student by any stretch.

And she was just like, very clearly, I mean, she was like, this is like the most important moment in your life.

And you will like probably not even recognize it till it's too late, either in a positive or good way.

But she's like, you are fully at a crossroads right now.

One path will lead you down a road of success where you'll use this experience and pain and everything that comes with it to like motivate you through life in a really positive way.

Or you'll just become a total fuck up

and everything will be derailed and you'll go on to accomplish nothing.

And obviously as a six-year-old, you're like, what?

You're like, lady, it's like 8.15 in the morning.

You know, like I'm going through some shit.

But it actually did really stick with me in a lot of ways from that moment forward as I thought about the different decisions I made in my life, whether consequential or consequential, we've had this thing in the back of my mind, which path is this

leading me towards and really like motivated me to like get my shit together and become like a good human and a really good student and push myself.

So ironically, I think it's funny when someone can offer new advice like that.