henry david ritu

I was chatting with one of my friends from the city and I described Ghana as my “self-introspection purgatory,” to which she replied “so modern day Emerson.” To which I replied, “Ghana is my Walden."

I read that exchange to a friend I was sitting next to and:

Friend: “oh my god, I wish I had friends I could make jokes about Emerson and Thoreau with.”

Me: “Wait, doesn’t everyone at NYU do that?”

Friend: (in a ‘lol ritu what are you even saying omg’ way) “No.”

I can’t imagine a world in which people wouldn’t make collegiate “trying not to be pretentious but kind of maybe self-awarefully being pretentious” jokes about transcendentalism to each other. 

Anyway, it got me thinking about how you are so shaped and bubbled in by the people you surround yourself with. In the city, most of my friends are digital media obsessive or art oriented folk, all of whom are really different/interesting but have similar interests or fortes that tie them together.

Here, though, it’s so interesting and different being surrounded with a majority of people either a. heavily invested in or b. majoring in public health/policy, nutrition, and/or cultural studies. It’s a really strange sensation.

Most people here are so knowledgeable about things I can’t even imagine: how “secure” food is, how sustainable our food processes are, what the benefits of charter vs. traditional schooling, and other topics you probably only have a cursory knowledge about because of that one documentary you saw that one time on Netflix. In short, everyone here has a niche but also all really kind of want to change the world?

It’s been really eye-opening learning things about those current precise issues but what is even more refreshing is realizing that I even have my own niche. I’ve only now realized how crazy I sound when I speak about digital media because now I know how passionate people sound about different things.

Back in the city/at home, I’m usually so blinded by “everyone’s” knowledge of the world and penchant for archaic cultural references that I don’t realize my “everyone” isn’t everyone’s “everyone.” My friends aren’t the friends that everyone has. Even though I strongly believe that my friends are very different than each other/a good representative of the diverse population of NYU, we might be all the same to someone outside of my circle.

But along with that, I’m also realizing that my friends from home really are so passionate about what they’re passionate about and that we might actually have things to offer the world/workplace?!?!? I’ve realized that I am quite the digital media/social media/geek queen/#alt music archetype in this setting. I do prefer getting into at length conversation about my conspiracy theories about impending cloud technology crises more than (oh gosh I don’t know...) taking hikes and omg that might be frowned on in certain circles but it’s okay with me because that’s me. 

But, it’s weird that I know what’s me in the first place you know? The fact that I’m this little girl with so much more learning to do, who inexplicably finds herself in West Africa and only there does she realize what really makes her her? *young adult novel*

And so yeah I guess I understand the merit of stepping outside what you know.

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I’m reading a lot these days, which is so reminiscent of my elementary school days it’s nice. Read three novels last week, now reading 1Q84 (still... I know, it’s hard to get through Murakami, it’s too densely beautiful) Into the Wild, Atonement & re-reading Catch-22.

I went to Elmina Castle a couple weekends ago, which was an incredibly humbling strange experience. Visiting the largest, oldest slave castle and not being able to begin to fathom the kind of pain the building once helped facilitate... wow. I wrote a piece about it in creative writing, I’ll share it one day.

xoxoxo