My Mind

Remember when you were little and had the craziest thoughts? You wanted to be a firefighter because it looked cool or you wished for that pony every birthday, because honestly how much could that cost? I know the things I believed when I was 9 years old have changed dramatically now that I'm at the ripe old age of 19. It's amazing that our minds have the ability to constantly change and adapt to new findings and ideas. The human brain doesn't even fully mature until... God knows when. What is it? 25 years old? 18 years old? No one knows when maturity really hits because it's going to be different from person to person. I'd like to think I'm mature about lots of situations, but hearing my biology professor say the words "penis" or "anus" still makes me giggle uncontrollably. Yea, I'm a 19 year old woman who still laughs at that, don't judge.

I guess my problem is that my mind is changing and it's upsetting to others. College has finally taken it's toll, but I feel like this isn't a bad situation. Yes, what I believed merely a year ago is not necessarily what I believe now. And yea, what I liked a year ago might be something I don't really like now. I don't understand why this is so terrible. College has brought a lot to the table for me. For one, I grew up in a fairly even town as far as republicans and democrats go, but here in Bloomington it's a pretty strong liberal community. We all love gays and are pro-choicin it up in here. I think a lot of college towns are like that because we're a young community with open minds. There are at least 40,000 students on campus with some form of an opinion and they are all going to differ. I think that is the essence and beauty of college; being exposed to what others think and feel. I'm exposed to new ideas every day and I can't just ignore them. That's called ignorance, people. My mind is a sponge, and I can't help but absorb everything I see and hear. That's what we all did as children too. It's how I learned my first cuss word. Of course, filtering what you see and hear is important as well. We can't all believe everything out there, but it's good to know what is out there.

We need to bare with those around us who are changing their minds all the time. I know I'm probably swaying back and forth between two sides with, like, everything, but I'm still working on figuring out who I am and what I want out of life. I think that's part of the whole college experience. At other stages in my youth I didn't feel the need to worry about it, but now is the time to get my shit together.