Dear touchpoints
frequency and consistency be damned.
Influence — the capacity to have an effect on the character, development, or behaviour of someone — is hard to define in the moment. It is difficult to notice a discernible change in someone as it is happening, or to know who or what will have a meaningful effect.
There are a number of people who have influenced me over the last three years. Some have moved away, some have lost touch, some continue to be good friends, and some were only passers-by in their very nature. Timing, the situation, any number of internal and external factors on either end, make this the case. Yet, these people have still made London what it is for me. For better, or for worse.
I can’t name each person. These individuals come from University, from internships, from events, activities and more. However, in the last year in particular there are two groups that truly transformed my experience of London. These groups are dynamic and changing, as are the people that make them up. These individuals gave me a sense of belonging over and above what I felt the two years before. This was extremely meaningful and I am grateful to them.
More recently there have been a few — somewhat random — individuals who quickly made a difference. They’ve offered the excitement and spirit of adventure for London that I had forgotten. It is easy to get lost in ones thoughts, to become entrenched in an idea or opinion. Seeing London through fresh eyes was special.
There are also a few particulars who have been with me for two or three years. Who have had just as profound an effect on me based on their actions and thoughts. They sit between the people I speak to most regularly, and the general ‘other’. In no way is this a diminishment of how special they are — in some cases those meetings have been the most meaningful, because they are scarce but reliable.
To those who will stay friends, or will be lost in memory; to those who offered an opinion, a learning experiences, or a new perspective: thank you. You’ve made me who I am today and who I will be tomorrow.
