Be yourself!
So this one isn’t exactly a direct quote from Mom and Dad, but it’s a combination of many things that all add together into one. In my own words, I’ve always been sort of an odd duck. The whole belonging thing is one I couldn’t really wrap my head around. I mean, I understood why belonging is important, but how the popularity thing worked has always been a bit beyond me. That made life in school a little bit difficult for me.
College wasn’t any different. I tried making friends and being who I thought I needed to be to make friends. I wasn’t happy but I didn’t know that, hey, it might actually be ok to be myself. Until I finally decided that I was tired of trying to be someone I really wasn’t and just stopped. I decided to do what I wanted to do and liked to do, even if it was a bit different from what everyone else was doing, and hope I found someone to join me along the way.
Fortunately, I did. I found my best friend. And though my parents don’t always agree with my choices in what movies I watch, I’ve explained my thinking and the way I see it, and they’ve accepted it and accept me for the way I am. I can feel their love for me and their desire that I reach the dreams that are so important to me. Continue reading Everything I Need to Know… (part 3) →