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| Robert Gassman Class of 2018 |
As the first semester of my college experience comes to a close, I have been reflecting on the notable changes in my life since making the transition away from high school. Beyond the new course load, schedule, friendships and experiences I have gained so far in college, I have begun to notice a drastic evolution in the way I think and how I am learning to see and understand the world.
Like most young people I know, I came from a relatively insulated background in which much of my life’s directions and decisions were guided and managed by others, and I tended to view many things in black-and-white terms. The world’s problems seemed more superficial and limited, and I generally discounted or overlooked a lot of what was going on around me. Then I arrived at the University of Louisville and the McConnell’s Scholars Program in August 2014. Almost immediately, another world – the real world – became apparent to me, along with its diversity of backgrounds, experiences, perspectives and philosophies. On any given day, I typically may hear four or five different languages spoken as I walk the campus and attend classes and programs. This broad level of interaction has helped open my eyes and mind and pushed me to evolve and broaden my thinking. I have realized some of the fallacies and shortcomings of parochial living and conventional thinking as I’ve recognized how much I inadvertently have focused on my own needs and self-interests while failing to understand the magnitude of the bigger, wider world around me.
As I near the end of my first collegiate semester, I confess that I am learning not to be so comfortable and complacent with the world and my place in it. I welcome opportunities to discuss challenging and controversial subjects, and am open and willing to hear a wide variety of perspectives and prospective answers to solving the complexity of problems in our world. I am keenly aware of many of my mental presets that may limit my thinking, restrain my pursuit of my own potential, and hold me back in contributing to the alleviation of significant world problems. With seven more semesters to go, I am looking forward to seeing where my path of growth takes me, and what new challenge to my thinking shall arise.
“Never let your sense of morals prevent you from doing what is right.” – Isaac Asimov
Robert Gassman is a freshman McConnell Scholar studying political science. He is from Louisville, Ky.