Education was never my higher calling.

Hear, O listeners of the present and the future, the words of Lil Peep, the young poet of a troubled age: “Education was never my higher calling.” In this brief but haunting phrase lies the voice of one who walked apart, who heard a different rhythm than the march of the classroom, and who chose the uncertain path of art instead of the safer path of structured schooling. These words are not to be read as contempt for learning, but as the honest confession of a soul drawn by another destiny. For there are many callings, and not all are answered within the walls of the academy.

What is meant by higher calling? It is that inward summons, that fire which stirs in the heart and will not be ignored. For some, it is the pursuit of knowledge in books and the halls of scholarship. For others, it is the creation of music, the shaping of art, the telling of stories, the living of truth through struggle. Lil Peep, with his raw voice and piercing lyrics, felt that his life’s mission was not to be fulfilled by conventional schooling, but by speaking to the broken, the lonely, and the lost. His education came not from professors, but from pain, from experience, from the deep currents of emotion that became his music.

History bears witness that many who shaped the world walked outside the ordered paths of formal schooling. William Shakespeare never attended a university, yet his words shaped the very soul of the English language. Thomas Edison had but a few months of formal education, yet lit the world with invention. They too might have said with Peep: “Education was never my higher calling.” And yet they did not reject learning itself—they learned differently, furiously, in the crucible of life. So too, Lil Peep sought not the silence of study but the storm of expression.

And yet, let us beware of misunderstanding. For though Peep turned from traditional schooling, his life reminds us of the cost of a path lived without anchors. The artist who rejects one form of education must still seek another, lest he be consumed by chaos. The world of fame and art is both liberating and dangerous, as Peep’s own brief life tragically revealed. His words are both declaration and warning: if one forsakes the schoolroom, one must still find teachers—in mentors, in discipline, in the lessons of hardship—lest talent be wasted and the soul undone.

The deeper meaning of Peep’s confession is this: the human spirit is vast, and education cannot be one-size-fits-all. There are those for whom the classroom nurtures greatness, and those for whom greatness blooms outside its walls. A society that forces every soul into the same mold risks crushing the uniqueness of its children. Instead, we must honor diverse paths, recognizing that true education is not always a diploma, but the awakening of one’s gift and the discipline to cultivate it.

Consider the life of Frida Kahlo, who, through injury and suffering, turned not to lectures or exams but to painting as her salvation. Her higher calling was not conventional study, but the expression of truth upon canvas. Through this she educated the world about identity, pain, and resilience. Like Peep, she did not despise learning—she simply found her own way to embody it. Her example, alongside his, reminds us that education is not confined to school, but exists wherever the soul commits itself to growth.

Therefore, O seekers of truth, let this be your lesson: honor your higher calling, but do not confuse rejection of the classroom with rejection of growth. If the school is not your path, then let life itself be your school. Seek wisdom from mentors, discipline from practice, and understanding from experience. Let not your gift consume you, but refine it with care. For greatness, whether in art or science, demands not only talent, but also learning—whether from books or from the hard teacher that is life.

The final word is this: education takes many forms, and the higher calling of each soul is different. Some find it in the academy, others in the streets, others still in the silence of their own hearts. Lil Peep’s words are the cry of one who followed his own fire, even at great cost. Let us honor his courage, but also take heed of the lesson: whatever your path, never cease to learn, never cease to grow, and never abandon the calling that makes your spirit burn.