What’s something you used to believe as a kid that seems ridiculous now?

As a kid, I really believed that if you were good to people, they would always be good to you. It felt like the way the world was supposed to work. Growing up taught me that everyone has their own battles, priorities, and way of seeing things. Sometimes people appreciate your kindness, sometimes they forget it, and sometimes they even start expecting it. That doesn’t mean you should stop being kind. It just means you shouldn’t tie your kindness to expectations. Be kind because that’s who you are, not because you expect the same in return.

I also genuinely believed mermaids were real. I was a huge Little Mermaid fan, had Ariel’s poster on my wall, and held on to this tiny bit of hope that they existed somewhere deep in the ocean. I even avoided seafood because I wanted to protect marine life. Turns out I was wrong about the mermaids, and somewhere along the way I realized I actually like seafood.

-S