I have this occasionally recurring dream where I’m in a classroom and realize that I haven’t done any work at all for the entire quarter. It’s not that I’m about to take a test which I haven’t studied for. That’s irrelevant, because even if I aced the test, I wouldn’t pass the class, having done no other work all quarter. In the dream I’m always asking myself, “what were you thinking?” and feeling ruined because now it’s too late to drop, it will be on my record, I have to retake it so I’ll be around for at least another quarter…
After I wake up it takes me a little bit of time to realize, wait, I’m done with school. I don’t have to take tests anymore. I’m not behind on anything. It’s pretty disorienting.
My parents tell me they still have these dreams, and they haven’t been in school for decades. Weird.