Journal 8

What is the most utopic choice you have made? Dystopic?

I feel that the most utopic choice I have made is to date my current girlfriend, Erika. This is a utopic choice to me for many reasons. The first is that she helped me see the person I had become. My senior year of high school and my first couple years of college I got caught up in the party crowd and caught up on what other people think of me. While sitting in class I could not quit thinking of my plans for the weekend. The weekend came, the drinks would start flowing and the bad choices would follow. Missing work, missing classes, and a DUI would change most people’s perspectives but not mine. I did not even see it but I had fallen into a very dystopic state.

After meeting Erika, I could easily tell where I was in my life. Each time we hung out I could see the person I had once thought I was going to be. I have always felt that I had good morals and values from the way I was raised but I never thought about how far I had gotten from them until after talking to Erika for just a few months. Though she hasn’t asked me to change I now want to and have a reason to.

Her strong personality has definitely had a strong influence on that. Just her strong personality has made me more driven and outgoing. I have always been more introverted and alcohol was an easy way to get out of my shell. When I drank I was always the life of the party and walking up and introducing myself to everyone. After meeting Erika I definitely find it easier to just be who I am and not care what others are thinking.

I do not believe that Erika has completely changed the person I am but she has definitely made me realize the person that I want to be. This is a very utopic choice for me because if I never met Erika I don’t know that I would have ever realized what path I was on. She has sort of grounded me and made me realize how important it is to remember what anchors you.