I once spent too much time chasing empty things: being top of the class, being admired, being valedictorian. I knew it was pointless, yet I couldn’t stop. School schedules chained us into five-minute breaks, reducing us to “students” who obeyed rather than “learners” who sought. Grades weighed heavier than health, joy, or passion.
Then came my debate teacher. He was no movie hero, but he cared. He reminded me that I could be ordinary and extraordinary at once—that what truly mattered was my curiosity, not how others saw me. He taught me that even within rigid systems, I could still live freely, shaping meaning instead of following form.
That is what I now seek: to make the unconventional life conventional—to help others believe that fulfillment need not follow the script of success. Because we are not born to be defined; we are born to define.