To which the society we live, we are absent of self-identity and are replaced with an identity in which the world wants to see. Society expects everyone to dress, act, and be a certain way, and when failing to abide by such expectations in any way, we’re damned. However, we are damned no matter what we choose to do. If you do dress too exposed to your body you are labeled as a slut, but if you dress too modestly you’re labeled as prude or boring. In this society, nobody wins. Nobody is allowed to live their life freely due to the society we live in thinking that everyone's lives matters to them, and in some sense it does, however, most often, it does not. The man walking down the street in a pink shirt has zero impact on the ability for you to live your own life, and the girl with the skirt that stops right under her bottom has dreams and ambitions and probably is just wearing that skirt because she thinks she looks pretty. But the sad thing about everything is that everyone thinks they know you. Everyone thinks that just by looking at you they can read your soul, peer inside your brain and dictate “that persons ____ or ____” without ever knowing the person, when in actuality, they know nothing. People are struggling to find their way in this world, but when everyone is pressuring how they should be, look, act, dress, etc. How is anybody every supposed to accomplish individuality?

In a world that is constantly trying to change you, put you down or exalt you, DO NOT LISTEN TO ANYONE. This is your life before anybody else’s. This is your chance to make whatever you want. If someone has ever told you that you cannot accomplish something you have set in your heart, prove them wrong. This is not their life to be living, it’s yours. In whatever direction you plan to lead your life in, remember that you’re not the first person trying to get there. It has been done before, and this time why can’t it be done by you. You are strong. You are independent. You are so many great things, but in this society, people are labeled by their ability without even being noticed or seen. People are labeled from first glances and ‘vibes,’ but neither of those things determine your worth. Nobody knows you as good as you know you. The world is going to try to steal your identity and change you into something they want to see, however, this life is not being lived for the joy of others. It is yours. You can be the next great. You can be anything you believe you can be. Never forget that.

Last night at work, and many nights before, I greet everyone that walks in the door and always tell the customers to enjoy their experience during their visit, and when they leave I always tell them goodnight (or something of the sort). However, only about half of the people that I do these things for will ever acknowledge my existence, yet that has become a real struggle in the food industry. Anyways, there was a man who ordered a to go order and was sitting in the lobby for 20 minutes watching me do this, and trying to run around and keep the restaurant clean and presentable at the same time. When his order got up he told me that he has never seen someone that can smile and still treat everyone with the same kindness after being ignored so many times. He told me never to lose that and to always stay true to who I am because “people suck” (as he stated). And this meant so much. He was only there for 20 minutes while I had been there for 6 hours.

However, I never once thought that I was doing anything special for anyone, I thought I was doing something any decent human being would do. Yet the sad thing about this whole story is that it isn’t something every decent human being would do, and that’s why the man with the to go order felt so inclined to encourage me to be kind. Kindness has been lost in society. It isn’t something everyone acquires even though it is something accessible to everyone. Our society has changed the idea of individuality into a cookie cutter image of what society should be. Don’t be fooled by it. Stay true to yourself and who you are. Everything means something. Every act of kindness, every act of ambition, every movement and step towards your dreams. They all mean something. So never give up. Never let this world tell you what you can and cannot do. You are strong, you can accomplish what you believe you can, and always know that others have done it before you, so this time, why can’t it be you?