Another Friday evening rolls around. My friend Thomas (who goes by Toe) and I found ourselves at our usual sushi place: Mount Fuji. Through a combination of the lack of good restaurants near us and the high quality of the moderately-priced sushi we had come to Fuji at least 4 times this summer (if you are ever in Durham, NC you have to go here it’s phenomenal). They have this great deal of buy one roll get one free that is impossible to resist. I promise I was not paid by Mount Fuji to promote them; they are just that good.
Anyway, I was talking with Toe about something random when our conversation came around to sushi. “When did you get so passionate about sushi?” he asks. That actually got me thinking. Because the truth is, I hated everything about sushi until around 8 months ago. I was an uncultured swine.
So, what changed? What drew me out of my cocoon to become the beautiful sushi-loving butterfly that everyone knows and adores? I honestly have no idea. Someone convinced me to try sushi, and it wasn’t as bad as I remembered it being years ago when I first had it. Then, I ate some more. Now, I can’t get enough.
My palate has expanded extraordinarily over the past few years. I still remember being the pickiest eater in my childhood. My mom would have to come to my preschool to feed me during lunch because I refused to have anything that I was unfamiliar with. In just the last two years, I have had tacos, gyros, sushi, hummus, curry, meatloaf, and countless other foods for the first time. I can’t believe what I’ve been missing out on.
Moral of the story: I changed. I changed a lot. The scrawny kid from 2 years ago probably wouldn’t recognize the person I’ve become and how my mindset and goals have changed (even though I’m still pretty scrawny). Going to a college over a thousand miles away also helped me reinvent myself. I got the chance to erase the chalkboard of my past and all its mistakes, and I got to meet new people unburdened by preconceptions of my personality. It was a huge blessing.
That’s another reason for why I wanted to go to North Carolina this summer for my internship. I didn’t know a single person in this state when I stepped off the plane at Raleigh Airport. Now I’m sad to say goodbye to amazing coworkers, lasting friends, and some of the best roommates. I’ve made a ton of experiences that I will cherish and learned much in my stint here.
It’s tough to go through a major metamorphosis in one’s personality. I used to hate changing parts of myself because I saw it as an admission that I was flawed, and I hated thinking that I wasn’t perfect. While I think there needs to be a balance, a healthy dose of an open mind that is willing to be changed allowed me to change into a better person. The scrawny kid of two years ago might not think as highly of the person I am now, but I still allow for his opinion, too, in my decision-making process. It is important not to change like the wind or you risk becoming a politician.
Having people around you with cemented preconceptions about who you are definitely doesn’t help facilitate change. One important part of my current philosophy is to treat people as if they have the propensity for change which comes with giving them certain amounts of second chances.
Obviously, change isn’t always for the better. I feel like it is my duty to try to confront what I see as downward spirals in people I care about, but sometimes I must also respect that, in their perspective, they might be changing for the better. It is also my obligation to support what I see as positive change in my peers.
For those looking for a change of pace where they would like to reinvent themselves, I would highly recommend throwing yourself in a new situation without having old friends as a crutch to fall back on. Camps, studying abroad and internships are the perfect places to do just that for us high-school and college-aged students. We are at the perfect age to find the best fit for who we are before becoming gears in the machine of corporate life. 😊