With the Pokemon Go frenzy on the rise, people of all ages are getting back outdoors and interacting with their communities. As the summer is coming to a close for those in school, people are going to stay inside more and interact with their neighbors less. Not only does this not utilize the boundless potential that we are given as citizens of this wonderful country we live in, but it is also unhealthy. Social interaction is a key part in the development of our individual personalities, and if we close ourselves off to all the good (and sometimes bad) life experiences the world has to offer, our friend group will be close to non-existent and our lives will be lived in regret not on all the bad things that we did, but rather on the good things we missed out on. Find something you enjoy doing and pursue it with a passion. If you really like listening to music, maybe pick up an instrument and find other people that you can play with. If you are more interested in gaming, build a gaming PC and attend or host a LAN party. The possibilities are endless but finding people with similar interests as you is key because the highs you experience will be higher and your burdens will become lighter.

This is part of why I joined Odyssey. I have so many ideas in my head but no platform to share them on. One of the main focuses present in Odyssey is community interaction. Being naturally introverted, social interaction did not come naturally to me as easily as it does to others. I proudly call myself a nerd because I am on the chess team, enjoy reading, and would like to build my own computer. As I type this, I am en route to a two-week backpacking trip that I am competing with my friends. Once I accepted who I was at heart, social interaction came much more naturally. I no longer worry what people think of me because I know who I am.

My name is Michael Crowe, I am a soon to be 17 old guy from Kansas City, Missouri, who enjoys playing chess. I have a very sarcastic, witty sense of humor, which combined with brutal honesty is a killer combination. If I’m not playing chess, I am probably on Reddit, playing guitar, or listening to Spotify. It’d be awesome to go to MIT or Stanford but we both know that is about as far fetched as me winning the lottery. I hope you can learn from my experience and not repeat the same mistakes I made. If I had one piece of advice for all the introverts out there, it would be trial and error is your best friend. Trying new things always leads to a positive result. You either have a bad experience and learn a valuable lesson or you have a great experience and expand your horizons. Whether you climb Kilimanjaro or go have a picnic at your local park, get outside today and embrace the community you live in and the neighbors you have been blessed to live with.