"Diversity: the act of thinking independently together" by Jeremy

"Diversity: the act of thinking independently together" by Jeremy - February 2014 Scholarship Essay

For seventeen years, I have been confined to life in the smallest town in the smallest state. The banalities are endless- no new neighbors, same classmates every year- and I have been consumed by a desire for change, for difference.

Malcolm Forbes’s quote “Diversity: the act of thinking independently together" is a maxim that I hold very close to my heart. Everywhere you go there will be some people that are different from you. There will be people with different cultures, people that don’t celebrate the same holidays as you, and people that have a different skin color than you. Yet what really separates them from you is their ideas. Your ideas are what makes you different from everyone else, what makes you- you. In my future I plan to live in a place where I am surrounded my many different ideas, constantly showing me a different way to do something, or a different way to look at an idea.

Every time I visit a city, wether it be New York City, Boston, or even Providence, I start to get light-headed. I can feel my blood rushing to my brain as I try to digest the stream of new ideas and cultures all around me. This euphoria that I feel is something that I plan to hold onto forever, as I move into the next stage of my life. To see why I cherish different perspectives so much, you have to know about where I grew up. My whole life I have lived in one town- Bristol, Rhode Island. Over the years Bristol has become a mecca for Portuguese people, whose culture has invaded many aspects of my town. You could be outcasted for badmouthing the pride and joy of all portuguese cuisine: chouriço. I don’t have any particular quarry with chouriço, but I don’t want to live in an atmosphere that is dominated by one certain viewpoint. I plan to give myself an opportunity to break free from stereotypes, where I can enjoy chouriço for breakfast, but for lunch I can have kielbasa, and dinner- bratwurst.