I still remember my very first HPR meeting. I had just settled into my new dorm in Hollis and finally picked out which classes I wanted to shop. All that was left was to choose a few campus organizations to join, and the HPR seemed to be the perfect outlet to explore my dual interest in politics and journalism. But little did I know when I walked into that meeting that I would leave with a pseudo marriage proposal.
I sat next to a girl I had met the week before during a freshman orientation event. The HPR meeting that day was pretty uneventful, but I still remember one thing in particular. As the meeting was ending, the girl tapped me on the shoulder and whispered in my ear: “If you become president of this magazine, I’ll marry you.”
I remember looking back at her, taken aback by the absurdity of her challenge. Even if I did want to marry her, there was no way I could become the HPR’s president. I just slunk into my chair and fiddled my thumbs. I looked around the packed room and took note of all the debate champions and former Senate pages. I began conjuring up all my flaws, and I could feel an imaginary weight crushing down on my shoulders. I had no idea if I was even going to survive that meeting, let alone become the president of the entire magazine.
Two years later when I stepped up to the microphone at a public forum to challenge Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe on his stance on comfort women, I was no longer the shy freshman who had doubted himself. I had become more confident in myself and my abilities, including my ability to speak out for what I believe is correct, even if it meant speaking against one of the world’s most powerful figures. That same mindset drove me to challenge Donald Trump six months later when I corrected a misstatement he had made concerning the United States’ military presence on the Korean peninsula. In both cases, I could have thought of my shortcomings and backed down, but I chose instead to believe in myself.
There is no doubt that I have grown immensely since that first HPR meeting. However, everything has not been on an uphill trajectory. I have found the importance of learning to cope with failures and using them as learning opportunities. There is no doubt that we will all face roadblocks in our lives, but how we adapt and deal with them is key. We should never be discouraged.
However, being confident does not mean that we should all be dogmatic and unmoving. It is just as important to learn to listen even to people with whom we disagree. We should learn when to admit we are wrong and acknowledge that people with different opinions can also have good intentions. For example, as a Hillary Clinton supporter, I was devastated last year on November 8. But in the aftermath of the election, I decided to keep an open mind and I reached out to individuals who had voted for my candidate’s opponent. Although I do not agree with all the rationale I have heard from Donald Trump supporters, I now understand where the Democratic Party fell short and how it can improve with an eye towards the future.
None of the growth I have experienced during college could have been possible without the classmates and friends I have met during my four years here. As Dean Michael Smith implores us to do at Convocation every year, “Don’t compare. Connect.” I have found that interacting with others and learning from them has been so meaningful. Rather than viewing other people as opponents in a competitive zero-sum game, I have approached them as people I can connect with on deep, personal levels. Learning from these people has undoubtedly had a huge impact on shaping who I am.
As I embark on the next chapter of my life, I look forward to stepping outside of the Harvard bubble and growing even more. Just thinking about who I was during that first HPR meeting is enough to prove to me how much can change within such a short amount of time. After all, I did end up becoming the HPR’s president. Unfortunately, the girl seems to have forgotten about her proposal that day. But I suppose that is just an indicator that some things—like my relationship status—just take a bit longer to change.
