Posted: September 13, 2016, 9:52am
The title does not convey it all. It doesn’t.
As I mentioned in my previous blog, I’m an international student pursuing my Master’s, here at USC. Based on the billion advices by the seniors and the zillion WhatsApp groups and the still gazillion ‘contacts’, the most indispensable phrase now embedded in our very heads is called ‘Social Networking’.
Fundamentally an ambivert, I find it pretty daunting sometimes. Nevertheless, my fascination for alien cultures and languages found a new apex when I started interacting with every person I could. And while I was adding more stories to my own, it became progressively clear in my head that intellect knows no bounds. LA, the epitome of cosmopolitan presence, opened its doors to myriad personalities and I quickly and carefully started imbibing all that I could. My reservations on initiating the small talks that could potentially impart me ‘revolutionary’ ideas, gradually started waning. Now I have a better idea on the infinite possibilities and solutions that a human can create for himself, just by deciding to refrain from his cocoon. It doesn’t really matter whether you march to the beat of your own drum or act like a Roman in Rome.
How did I decide on that title? Well, I made a lot of friends here. But I have two best friends; my denims and my shoes. We actually stay together the entire day! You’d often find people rant, “Master’s is quite taxing”. Indeed it is. The day starts early and ends late. But my denims and my shoes don’t leave my side. I run. And on the road, every evidence of human intellect crystallized into artefacts and possessions motivates me to contribute further. As engineers, we have taken charge to make this world a more meaningful place and move beyond mere mechanization. My shoes anchor my feet and make me run faster. Lectures, discussions and exams are the different hues of my denims. They are composed of those intricate and well woven works of the people responsible for making these denims a perfect fit. Dwelling a bit more on this, I realize, that’s all we need. Shoes, for the drive; denims, to confront the world well equipped.
To no surprise, everyone seems to have befriended them. Denims, as jeans or jackets or shorts provide similar benefits to all the cultures. Every person I meet here, in some way or the other, exemplifies how motivation can be derived even from the most pedestrian chores. There’s an impeccable air of creativity and fierce competition to counter the potential complacence. With a throng of powerful ideas and the necessary means for propulsion, all packed in a finite radius, imagine how indelibly the world is being impacted. How phenomenal yet inconspicuous congruity we all carry. Individually we often don’t realize what we’re doing collectively. United by intellect, coloured by diversity, and driven by the idea of collective good – that’s how I paint USC in my mind. And it cannot be truer.
Published on July 25th, 2017
Last updated on August 10th, 2017