A phrase often heard is, “you are what you eat” and I think this applies to the high school experience more than it applies to other things. In these formative years, we are becoming the people we are going to be for the rest of our lives. With that being said, often days I find myself questioning who that person truly is. There is always the ideal version of me– the one who gets all her work done on time, who gets enough sleep, etc., but who am I truly? Like many high school students I take from my surroundings and this translates into what I wear, what I say, and many aspects of my personality. This poses that same question though, without all the stimulus, without all the inspiration– what do I like?

   When we meet new people, we tend to ask or be asked a series of questions. This questions are typically in regards to what our “favorites” are. In this we look to categorize a person by their likes and dislikes. When we ask a person what their favorites are, we are placing them in boxes of their answers. For example, my mom has grown tired of the things I declare as being my favorite, because in less than a week they often change.

   I know personally, I am constantly looking for some kind of consistency in my life to feel stable. However, as we grow and evolve, it becomes more evident that this is an unrealistic expectation. Humans are not consistent, we are always changing and growing. The person I am at home is not the same person I am at school– the same person I am in class is not even the same as I am walking the halls.

   So trying to find that consistency, while nice, doesn’t always work– isn’t always fair. I can try a food I’ve never had before, read a book I’ve always doubted, and this could end up becoming my favorite. I think we need to start accepting this about humans– in the small or big sense– we are all changing. We adapt to what’s around us, we can be altered. I can only hope that once we accept this part of ourselves, we can truly start to grow as productive human beings.