Personal Experience of Adapting to the Environment - Essay Example

Growing up in a conservative family that observed high moral standards, I had acquired a stronghold on high moral and ethical judgments, which had always been a guide in making all sorts of decisions, important ones, or mere casual ones with no significant consequences. But the whole world doesn’t follow the same rules and every now and then one meets people and enters systems whose principles or function challenges one’s ethical framework and tempt them to adapt to the needs and pressure of the moment, at the same time letting go of their own principles. Although, adapting to the environment and compromising is sometimes the only way to survive in these times, stronger and more successful are those men who stick to their principles and never deviate no matter what. It is to such people that our world still has a little bit of dignity and humanity left. Many like instances have occurred in my life, forcing me to choose and make important decisions that firmed the path of my life forward and laid the foundation of my relationships with the people involved. I will quote here one such instance and describe the event and its consequences in detail.
I was thirteen years old at that time. Recently, reunited with an old friend who went to the US for a few years and returned that summer, I used to spend a lot of time playing and chatting with her. We had been together since we both were two years old; added to the fact that we were neighbors; nothing that we did not share and knew about each other. Be it clothes, toys, books, stationery, or lunch, we never kept anything to ourselves. Same school, same classes, same locality, we were inseparable.
Although her recent visit to the US that took a little longer than expected, was a frustrating time for me since I was not a crowd-loving person, and had very few close friends, it did not prove successful in ruining our friendship. When she returned, we reunited with double energy, like the two ends of rubber bands, which doubles their momentum once they are suspended from their farthest ends. Revisiting old memories and catching up on new ones became our favorite pastime. Nevertheless, as they say, the only constant thing on this earth is change (Rupert, 1). Like all good things, this had to end too.
Whilst catching up on each other’s recent past stories, I found out that she was dating a boy in our neighborhood ever since she went to the US. Amazed and shocked by her recent updates, I decided to keep it to myself only since her reputation was dear to me. On hearing more, I found out that no one in her family knew about the boy, which troubled me a little. Now, it is important to understand why it was a big deal. Since our community is very conservative about inter-gender relationships, young teenagers seen dating or even talking together were scandalized and reprimanded. Therefore, my first reaction was that of fear and anxiety since I did not want her to get into any trouble. Nevertheless, the daring and spoiled kid she had always been, she did not pay attention to me. Now, I turn to the climax where the incident occurred.
So one fine day, I was at home, alone since it was afternoon, and my mother had gone shopping for groceries. I hear a doorbell and I saw my friend in the peephole, surprised and delighted at the same time. When I opened it, she greeted me with over-excitement and it was then when I sensed something weird. I asked her to come inside to which she declined. Then, she started her purpose, which caught me by utter despair and shock. She announced that she was going to see her boyfriend at his place and wanted me, her best friend, to accompany her. Now, this was a really tricky situation for a recently turned teenager who had a picture-perfect life with no such deviant experiences.