Now that I’m home in LA for my last ever college winter break, I realize how quickly the time has passed since I began at NYU as a curious freshman, new to the shimmering concrete jungle. Each time I return home from New York, a comforting sense of familiarity and sameness greets me and welcomes me back to my original stomping ground. The same faces, the same voices, the same sounds, and the same sights are always present, seemingly unaffected by time – and thank God, because I have always hated change.
One of my favorite parts of visiting home is driving in my car and gazing at the swaying palm trees that delicately embellish the bold blue sky. This sight represents solace, security, and relief, reminding me that no matter how much time passes, some things will always remain the same, like LA’s landscape.
I drove down Beverly Drive today with my sunroof open, wearing my new pair of Ray-Ban sunglasses. As I reached a stop sign, I swiftly took off my glasses to clean its lenses with my t-shirt. When I looked down at them, I was initially perplexed, but then, I was strangely delighted and intrigued by what I saw. Staring back at me was the reflection of my beloved blue skies and towering palm trees on my black lenses, covered with tiny particles of dust. No longer appearing vastly above me, its reflection looked small, warped, curved, and cased within two plastic frames in my hand. The familiar suddenly became unfamiliar.
As I reflect on my past at NYU, freshman Daniel is no longer familiar to me; I am not the same person that I was during my previous visits home for winter break, as I’ve reached a new place in my life. I am finally a senior now, with much more understanding, curiosity, and perspective than I had when I began my undergraduate career. Soon enough, I will cross the threshold into a realm that lies beyond NYU’s borders and past LA’s familiar streets. Like the reflection of the sky and the trees, I feel as though I’ve transformed in some shape or form and have adapted to the ever-changing contexts of my life – a reality that I am sure we can all distinctly relate to.
It seems, therefore, that no matter how much we strive to hold onto the familiarity of the past and the comfort of the present, life takes on new forms – just as my cherished blue skies and palm trees did in my lenses. But if we acknowledge the presence of difference and open our eyes to the beauty of change, we can view our lives from new viewpoints with a refreshing sense of clarity. In doing so, we gain vaster perspective and deeper understanding of our progressions and ourselves – as everything around us and within us beholds the potential to transform.
