Page 45 - Humanism 2018
P. 45
communication was limited. One great thing I appreciate about our human race is that friendship is a
universal language. In addition to my new friends not speaking English, the street signs were in Hawaiian. I
learned that “e” sounds like “a,” i sounds like “e,” and “w” sounds like “v.” Pronunciation must be easy
enough, you might say, until you try pronouncing the state fish, humuhumunukunuku pua’a. I remember in
my heart I could feel that every day I learned something new, and I loved it. I still reflect fondly on this time.
Fast forward and orientation day arrived. I was excited to finally meet my cohort. In an effort to be
outgoing, I chose the specialty pizza over the plain, which as it turned out had coconut oil instead of tomato
sauce, and was covered in prawns. I don’t eat seafood and had never heard of a prawn. Oops. After giving it
my best effort, I still hated it, but you can’t win them all. After lunch, orientation took us out for a guided
tour of the downtown area. Near campus is a magnificent waterfall, Rainbow Falls, appropriately named
because Hilo’s high precipitation rate keeps the falls bursting with gushing water and surrounded by mini
rainbows from the spray hitting the pooling water below. I accidentally rolled my ankle severely, which
swelled up to the size of a small grapefruit on the short ride to the medical center. But I couldn’t complain.
The doctor confirmed it wasn’t broken, and I continued on my way.
The night before classes started, I signed up for a class I had previously been interested in and dropped. I
signed back up for it solely because I met a boy with nice eyes and he was taking it, too. Perhaps this is an
example of adapting. On the other hand, perhaps it’s utterly foolish. We walked to class together the next
morning. Normally, I like to sit in the front half of the room. But he sat in the back row, so I sat in the back
row. I think back on this, and I want girls (and boys) to know that they don’t need to change themselves for
someone to like them. Be yourself, always.
The semester continued and, little by little, I continued to come out of my shell. He and I went on to date
for four years. And though we were in love, he once commented that I was too shy. He felt I had good
ideas, but I would rather whisper them to the person sitting next to me than speak up in front of a group.
His observations were correct because, on some days, I do prefer that. But every amazing individual on this
planet is composed of multiple layers. We cannot simply minimize someone’s personality into such black-
and-white generalizations. Yes, I am an observer. Yes, I consider my ideas carefully. Yes, on some days I am
introverted. But the opposite is also true. I am outgoing, extroverted, and command presence. I had the
opportunity to showcase these traits as president of the Executive Student Government during my second
year at WesternU. Though it had been many years since we had broken up, I vehemently abolished my ex’s
incomplete and simplified view of me on the morning I had the presidential privilege of addressing more
than 4,000 new students, family members, and friends at the 2016 WesternU Convocation.
Life is full of twists and turns. Big stressors usually work themselves out to be small, and seemingly small
decisions can turn out to have big impacts. I would like to end by sharing that one weekend while I was
living in Hilo, my friend Alyssa and I traveled over to the island of Oahu for the world premiere of season
six of the television show “Lost,” and I fell in love with the island and its beauty. I returned to Oahu a year
later and completed a second semester. A couple of years after that, I moved to the island permanently,
working as a data analyst and, in my free time, in a lab on campus. When people ask me about what
brought me to Hawaii, I always think about a coincidental encounter from the end of my sophomore year. n
HUMANISM IN THE HEALTH SCIENCES 2018 • VOL. 21 43
universal language. In addition to my new friends not speaking English, the street signs were in Hawaiian. I
learned that “e” sounds like “a,” i sounds like “e,” and “w” sounds like “v.” Pronunciation must be easy
enough, you might say, until you try pronouncing the state fish, humuhumunukunuku pua’a. I remember in
my heart I could feel that every day I learned something new, and I loved it. I still reflect fondly on this time.
Fast forward and orientation day arrived. I was excited to finally meet my cohort. In an effort to be
outgoing, I chose the specialty pizza over the plain, which as it turned out had coconut oil instead of tomato
sauce, and was covered in prawns. I don’t eat seafood and had never heard of a prawn. Oops. After giving it
my best effort, I still hated it, but you can’t win them all. After lunch, orientation took us out for a guided
tour of the downtown area. Near campus is a magnificent waterfall, Rainbow Falls, appropriately named
because Hilo’s high precipitation rate keeps the falls bursting with gushing water and surrounded by mini
rainbows from the spray hitting the pooling water below. I accidentally rolled my ankle severely, which
swelled up to the size of a small grapefruit on the short ride to the medical center. But I couldn’t complain.
The doctor confirmed it wasn’t broken, and I continued on my way.
The night before classes started, I signed up for a class I had previously been interested in and dropped. I
signed back up for it solely because I met a boy with nice eyes and he was taking it, too. Perhaps this is an
example of adapting. On the other hand, perhaps it’s utterly foolish. We walked to class together the next
morning. Normally, I like to sit in the front half of the room. But he sat in the back row, so I sat in the back
row. I think back on this, and I want girls (and boys) to know that they don’t need to change themselves for
someone to like them. Be yourself, always.
The semester continued and, little by little, I continued to come out of my shell. He and I went on to date
for four years. And though we were in love, he once commented that I was too shy. He felt I had good
ideas, but I would rather whisper them to the person sitting next to me than speak up in front of a group.
His observations were correct because, on some days, I do prefer that. But every amazing individual on this
planet is composed of multiple layers. We cannot simply minimize someone’s personality into such black-
and-white generalizations. Yes, I am an observer. Yes, I consider my ideas carefully. Yes, on some days I am
introverted. But the opposite is also true. I am outgoing, extroverted, and command presence. I had the
opportunity to showcase these traits as president of the Executive Student Government during my second
year at WesternU. Though it had been many years since we had broken up, I vehemently abolished my ex’s
incomplete and simplified view of me on the morning I had the presidential privilege of addressing more
than 4,000 new students, family members, and friends at the 2016 WesternU Convocation.
Life is full of twists and turns. Big stressors usually work themselves out to be small, and seemingly small
decisions can turn out to have big impacts. I would like to end by sharing that one weekend while I was
living in Hilo, my friend Alyssa and I traveled over to the island of Oahu for the world premiere of season
six of the television show “Lost,” and I fell in love with the island and its beauty. I returned to Oahu a year
later and completed a second semester. A couple of years after that, I moved to the island permanently,
working as a data analyst and, in my free time, in a lab on campus. When people ask me about what
brought me to Hawaii, I always think about a coincidental encounter from the end of my sophomore year. n
HUMANISM IN THE HEALTH SCIENCES 2018 • VOL. 21 43
