Céleste Lopez

Life is but a succession of unknown events. For this reason, you’ll never get bored. There are always unpredictable events happening. For the worst or for the best. For the best? Because you can look forward to that situation you know only bits and pieces to it. It is an exciting quest you have to embark on to fit all the pieces together. This was the case when I was told about that one cat I could adopt.

 

I knew she was a cat. One that enjoyed human presence: despite being a stray cat, running across wheat fields all day, she always came back home to receive some food and cuddles. But what did she look like? What was the color of her eyes? What was her personality? I had yet to find out about these elements. I wanted to have a cat so badly, so advancing towards this quest was exciting. The outcome could only be exciting and fun. When you’re a child, the world feels like a lively and carefree playground.

 

As you grow older, you start to notice all the dark corners of anxiety scattered here and there. Living in an unpredictable world becomes the worst. What will happen? Have I made the right choice? These are some of the questions that filled my mind, during my first night in Montréal. I was lying in bed in my hotel room. University classes would start in a week. The unknown of this situation was certainly more frightening than exciting this time. Would the outcome be positive? I can easily be impressed by a situation in which I find myself for the first time.

 

Let’s take the example of my first driving lesson. I found myself at a place I never found myself before: in front of the steering wheel. That was already scary in itself. Imagine my state when we pulled out of the parking lot. I, a totally unexperimented driver, joined the rest of the traffic. I’m clenching the steering wheel and I start inverting my right and left, which usually never happens to me. And it was not a total disaster, but I wonder “will I ever be able to master this skill?”. I continued my lessons, and I am still learning but I can clearly see my progress. I’m still stressed at times. But I manage to not hold the steering wheel like my life depended on it. I am now in charge of both steering wheel and pedals. I have turned the novelty into something familiar. One day, I will be able to look back on it and wonder why did I ever worry I would not make it?. Just like with my decision to study Liberal Arts abroad in Montréal.

 

​Unknown can be very intimidating, but there’s one thing I'm sure of: the feeling of pride and tenderness you feel when you look back on your past self, and all the progress you’ve made since then, makes it all worthwhile.