Yet, when I go through the skills and knowledge acquired during my school education there are many bits in there that I am now eternally grateful for, that I did not understand the need for as a kid.

I am not sure where I would have ended up if left to my own devices, e.g. as a kid starting first class I was bad at languages and hated it with a passion, in the last class I had the single best German and English final exams in my school district and language had grown on me.