the allegory of the road trip
Imagine wanting to go to North Carolina from Wisconsin but you only have a car. You take all of the necessary steps to get started; you make sure you car is running properly and get it inspected, you plan out your entire trip down to eight stops along the way, and, lastly, you decide who you are going to take with you. You decided to take your friends with you because you that is who you trust the most and your are comfortable with them. You might meet some new friends along the way but you only have room for four in your car as you make your way to your destinations. Some people might be able to squeeze in until your next stop, but they wont be there for long. Your main task right now is to just drive; you are just focused on the necessities like food and rest stops. This is the part in the trip where you have a little fun and play games to make the trip easier. This is also the part of the trip where there is the most conversation and distractions. Wisconsin is a place where animals like to jump out at you and if you are not ready for them, they can put a nice dent in your car. Luckily, your friends noticed any wildlife before anything damaged your car. Eventually, you realize that you are getting low on gas and you have not made it as far as you thought you were going to. Right now it is no big deal because it is the start of the trip and you are around many gas stations so you stop at the closest one and fill up. As it turns out, you did not get as many miles per gallon as you hoped and in order to make the rest of the trip you need to drive carefully and stay on course.
I think this a perfect analogy of my college experience and there are a lot of metaphors packed into the "Allegory of the Road Trip". First off, the destination resembles graduation and the eight pit stops is each semester. Deer jumping out in front of resembles you forgetting that a test is tomorrow. As college started, I made a few really good friends within the week, it just so happened that they were my roommates. It is important to have those few people you can trust to help you through your college career just as it is important to have those people that know how to jump start a car or change a tire on a road trip. When I first started my semester I knew I wanted to make a certain GPA but did not really think about it until half way through the first semester. As you drive along in a car, you know you need gas, but sometimes you don't realize it until that orange light comes on and beeps at you. I am not certain if I will make my GPA goal right now and it feels like I am going to run out of gas before I make it to my next stop and I am going to have to settle with what ever mom and pop gas station is near me. Regardless of whether or not I make it to the gas station I planned to go to, as long as I plan better in the future, I will still be able to make it to my destination (graduation) on time.
I think this a perfect analogy of my college experience and there are a lot of metaphors packed into the "Allegory of the Road Trip". First off, the destination resembles graduation and the eight pit stops is each semester. Deer jumping out in front of resembles you forgetting that a test is tomorrow. As college started, I made a few really good friends within the week, it just so happened that they were my roommates. It is important to have those few people you can trust to help you through your college career just as it is important to have those people that know how to jump start a car or change a tire on a road trip. When I first started my semester I knew I wanted to make a certain GPA but did not really think about it until half way through the first semester. As you drive along in a car, you know you need gas, but sometimes you don't realize it until that orange light comes on and beeps at you. I am not certain if I will make my GPA goal right now and it feels like I am going to run out of gas before I make it to my next stop and I am going to have to settle with what ever mom and pop gas station is near me. Regardless of whether or not I make it to the gas station I planned to go to, as long as I plan better in the future, I will still be able to make it to my destination (graduation) on time.