I was gifted Patti Smith’s “Just Kids” on my 16th birthday and was instantly enamored. Since then, I have been known to gift it to my friends. Sometimes college students feel that they need to have their futures all figured out — this book shows that you don’t. In an Ivy League culture obsessed with direction and achievement, “Just Kids” reminds us that the most beautiful parts of life stem from embracing what makes us feel alive.
With “Just Kids,” Patti Smith accomplished something rare — an unpretentious memoir that depicts a young woman who was brave enough to live beyond societal confines. She shares the raw details of her formative years in New York City and her lifelong relationship with fellow artist, Robert Mapplethorpe. The pair met in Brooklyn as young, broke, passionate artists who wanted to find themselves through their creativity — exploring various mediums like painting, photography, music and writing. The photographs scattered throughout immerse us into Smith’s spontaneous world, tracking her job-hopping, cramped apartments and complex relationships, both platonic and romantic. Through art, Smith created a life — she did not simply live the life others wanted her to live.
As college students, we are just like Smith — living and chasing our dreams in an unfamiliar place. While attending a rigorous university with world class education may create pressure to craft our perfect future, we must stay curious in order to fully take advantage of our time at Brown.
According to a 2024 study, 56% of American teens feel pressure to have their life paths figured out — college, employment and relationships. We live in a hustle culture that celebrates extreme productivity and ambition, which is especially apparent at institutions like Brown. Many of us subscribe to the notion that our worth is linked to our productive output, a mindset called toxic productivity. The pressure students are subjected to and subject themselves to is not always inspiring — it often promotes exhaustion, leading to cycles of pervasive burnout. We are only in college once, and our choices dictate whether we are going to enjoy the process or try to plan the unplannable. Reading about Smith’s younger years encourages us to question what we are living for and be courageous enough to act with inquiry.
At Brown, we have room to take our academics seriously while also exploring our curiosities. Many of us committed to the grind in high school, and that tenacity paid off. Upon coming to Brown, it can feel hard to turn off the college acceptance-oriented mindset. We feel the need to be excellent and strive for perfection. While I stress daily about my classes and what summer jobs I may apply for, I also think it is important to stop and smell the flowers from time to time — or else, what is the point of it all? We have the opportunity to work toward our aspirations while also leaning into what brings us joy — taking a random class that interests us, joining a club that does not relate to our concentration or finally starting a hobby we never had time for in high school. There is an undeniable value to being goal-driven and ambitious, but this shouldn’t come at the expense of the joys of life that Smith describes. “Just Kids” gives us the courage to pursue our passions despite the fear of instability, to choose curiosity over continuous acceleration. Instead of creating a straight-lined path dictating our 20-year plans, we should allow ourselves to grow in squiggles.
This past February, I made my dad get lunch with me at the Chelsea Hotel — an iconic commune for some of the most legendary artists, including Smith herself. In “Just Kids,” she shares stories of creating art in her room, feeling fulfilled because she was doing what she loved with whom she loved. Her story invites us to find our own Chelsea Hotel — a place that encourages us to be brave and choose authenticity. Whether it be poetry for no one else to see or photographs of the beautiful things we witness in our day-to-day lives, let Smith be our reminder to create what brings us joy.
Beatriz Lindemann ’29 can be reached at beatriz_lindemann@brown.edu. Please send responses to this column to letters@browndailyherald.com and other opinions to opinions@browndailyherald.com.
