| Senior feels free after releasing quirky secrets (3/08) | | Print | |
| Written by Sanyee Yuan | |
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I sleep with a night light. I return library books half a year late. I don’t swear. I buy clothes from Victoria’s Secret online. I tell left-handed people that I feel a spiritual connection to them even though I’m not left-handed. I coordinate outfits in my head weeks ahead of time. I can’t read without moving my lips. I burp like a man. And I have 21 stuffed animals and two baby blankets on my bed. Life would be easier without keeping so many secrets. We would all be happier if we didn’t feel the need to hide our weird little habits or embarrassing quirks from our friends, co-workers or family. I hope to abolish the fear of embarrassment that leads to secrets by revealing three of my own, because life is too short for secrets. So, here goes nothing. 1. I walk around malls hoping to run into talent agents. I’ve read them all: the stories about how the celebrity was “discovered” by a talent scout in a mall while shopping. It’s no secret that I’d love to work amongst the big names in Hollywood. Although the movie industry is an elusive one, I won’t allow statistics and pessimism to deter me from fulfilling that dream. Being able to walk on the red carpet at the Oscars means taking chances to get discovered. This means not only sending headshots and resumes to agencies, but also strolling and patrolling around the Westfield food court looking well-groomed. The table of business-casual adults might look at me strangely as I throw them a wide, pearly-white smile — but you never know who is shopping. 2. I love watching the Disney Channel. During homework breaks and weekend down time, I usually flip on the Disney Channel for good laughs and entertainment. I prefer watching the witty Hannah Montana and the trouble-making, fun-loving Martin twins living the “Suite Life.” I enjoy quality, family-friendly shows, but I also like the equally wholesome original Disney movies, which highlight common adolescent themes of growing up, fitting in and valuing friendship. In today’s cynical world, I find comfort in watching Disney tackle daily issues like unreasonable teachers and school bullies with the moral support of their family and friends. The Disney Channel isn’t childish or dumb. It’s good, clean fun. 3. I’m an extreme hoarder. The Guinness Book of World Records should label me “The Person Who Has the Hardest Time Throwing Anything Away.” That’s right: I collect everything and rarely throw any of it away. I keep all my essays, projects, stapled sets of math problems and lab reports inside overstuffed folders crammed into boxes in my garage. I have journals and calendars from kindergarten. Nearly every fortune that I’ve found in cookies lies in a growing collection on my bedroom table. They’re strewn next to a stack of colorful, outdated MUNI fast-passes. My CD cases also contain the plastic packaging that I neatly tore from them: the ones that have the review stickers on the corner. And the list goes on. Although I don’t throw away used contacts and have a hard time taking out the trash, I realize that my hoarding is a by-product of my sentimental nature and my emotional tendency to get attached to possessions and people. I don’t like to say goodbye. And though I have just said goodbye to three secrets, allow me to share another: Revealing unusual habits and unorthodox quirks is liberating. We spend too much of our lives conforming to what others expect, afraid that we won’t be accepted for our beliefs or behaviors. We should realize that our eccentricities make us unique. True friends will love us for who we are. And for us to love ourselves, we need to embrace the belief that the truth will indeed set us free. |
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to listen.
