Society has misconstrued the idea of boredom, equating it with laziness and loneliness. Personally, I am guilty of feeling as if occupying my time automatically leads to satisfaction. That statement remains somewhat truthful to the majority of people, but we should learn ways to turn boredom into growth. We have all been taught that boredom is a negative feeling, but it’s time to change our mindset. It’s important to take advantage of those precious moments when we finally take a break from school and take control of our own time.

Being alone or being with others, boredom finds its way to creep in, but these two Tualatin High School alumni, Candice Vo and Noah Gilbertson, show that people can take advantage of their time either way.

Though Vo had numerous friends in high school, she often felt as if she had a lot of alone time.

 “I wasn’t in the social demographic of high school, but I found ways to turn being bored into an opportunity to reflect on my life,” Vo said. “I hear people ask if I feel like I wasted my high school years, and I do regret some of what I missed out on, but the freedom I had allowed me to better understand my goals and desires.”

Gilbertson, who was always bombarded with engagement during his years at TuHS, has a similar approach to how boredom leads to growth within him personally.

“I think I stretched myself out too thin, but it’s because I felt like I needed to. In my own life, being okay with being bored is something I’ve struggled with a lot. I’ll be busy regularly for a few weeks, and then when I finally have a night off, I feel as if I have no one to be with or nothing to do, and it feels detrimental to my mental health. I think boredom is important, as it gives us a chance to reflect and give our bodies and minds time to rest and be free from a world of constant overstimulation and the feeling of being overwhelmed,” Gilbertson said.

As the seasons switch around, we are all in need of a spring cleaning; both physical and mental. Allow boredom to be the gateway to growth and discovery in yourself.