Solzhenitsyn once said that “Hastiness and superficiality are the psychic diseases of the twentieth century.” Initially, I had always thought that hastiness and superficiality are ideas that are entirely separate from the everyday activities we engage in; however, I am now realizing that often times these very ideologies can define what each and every one of us gains from the experiences we engage in.

Our community engagement session was led by Julio who presented the scenario of a young girl who went all the way to Africa in order to get Instagram likes. Not only did she blatantly disrespect all of the communities she interacted with, but she also seemed to only care about the few pictures she wanted to take while largely ignoring the rich culture around her. Social media, like most things, serves many useful purposes and has many adverse effects as well. Where it has allowed a countless number of people to seamlessly connect with one another, it has also pushed others to maintain a superficial image, a charade so to speak of the person they want others to perceive them to be. This made me realize that two people given the same exact opportunities and experiences do not necessarily gain the same things- more specifically this highlighted how important our priorities and mindset can be, as most of the time the only things we really gain from an experience are the ones we seek.