Old Friends, A New Lens

In preparation to complete this assignment I scouted out all of the people I best know and one particular relationship stood out. I decided to interview one of my closest companions, Zaina, and chose her among the rest because one quality of hers that always stands out is how amazing she is of a listener. Zaina is notably interested in helping others, offering advice, and hearing which is why I wanted to conduct an interview focused solely on her to not only change the dynamic of our interaction but also reveal more.

1.Choose 3 words to describe yourself.

Compassionate, dedicated, loyal. 

I definitely think these 3 words encapsulate Zaina entirely. She's a practitioner of empathy and and by her friends' sides at all times.

2. What is your biggest accomplishment?

My biggest accomplishment is finishing all seven Harry Potter books in eight days. The fifth book took two days. I like Harry Potter because it involves an entire fictional world that is built within the real universe. 

Zaina on the left, dressed up Harry Potter for Halloween (2016)

3. Who is your favorite person?

My Dad. He is compassionate, kind, intelligent and everything I aspire to be one day. 

4. Is there anything you don’t like about him?

No. 

5. Where do you see yourself win five years?

Oh god, working and living in the city with friends hopefully. I wanna live there because there is always something happening and there is always something to do. I’ve always wanted to live there since I was like five. 

6. What kind of friend of you think you are?

I think I’m a really understanding and caring friend. I think I’m really good at seeing things in other peoples’ perspectives and listening to their problems. 

I asked Zaina this question purposely to test whether or not she was aware of what kind of companion she has been to me and many of our other friends. It's interesting to know she does in fact know what role she plays within her relationships and I personally find her actions even more valuable because of her awareness of her part. 

Zaina & Me: BFFs

7. You have one immediate wish. What would you wish for? 

A healthy lifestyle.

(5:36 a.m.) Everyone hopes Zaina's wish comes true...

It's interesting to watch someone elaborate upon themselves in a setting as formal as an interview and especially when that person a friend with whom you share the most informal times with. I'm eager to learn more from this perspective which I've not explored as much when it comes to people I'm very comfortable with. 

Traveling for Dance

Friday 11:00 pm 

The air is live and everyone is happy. Meeting people from across the nation whose college lives and journeys fall along such a similar path of your own accounts for incredible feelings. My whole dance troop and I were in the heart of College Park, Maryland attending a mixer for the competition we were to attend the next day. The music was loud, the games were fun, and everyone was spirited to be there. I looked forward to more excitement and the same cool feeling.

Saturday 4:00 am 

No, that time stamp is no typo. Yes, my whole dance team arrived back at our motel at 4 o’ clock in the morning the day before our competition. After we attended the mixer for teams that traveled to be there, we snatched a room in the business building at the University of Maryland where our comp was being held. Our makeshift rehearsal went all the way through the whee hours of dawn all while we had to be up and getting ready at 7 that morning. My feelings of exuberance were quickly replaced by stress and exhaustion. I was going to be a long weekend 

Saturday 6:00 am

My friend jostled me out of bed, “Wake up! We have to get ready.” With only 3 hours of sleep we bustled out of bed and started attacking each others’ hair with pins and clips. The process resembled a small hill: it started when everyone was half alive and very slow then heightened with stress as we began to rush to meet our schedule for the day, and finally eased down as we were rounding up the last of us and we grabbed some surprisingly good breakfast at the motel’s kitchen. 

10:00 am 

“We have 20 minutes- we’re doing two run throughs!” shouted my captain as she walked across the stage checking the dimensions. The dress rehearsal flew by and before we knew it we would spend the next few hours anxiously waiting for our time on stage.

Saturday 6:30 pm

We entered the stage, the music was cued, the lights shined bright, and everything after was a blur. Applause echoed throughout the crowd and we walked off.

Saturday 9:00 pm

We stood surrounding the judges along with the various other teams that competed as well and watched the envelopes pass between their hands. The envelope with a 3 labeled on it was opened. A team name was announced and cheers fled the crowd. The number 2 envelope was being undone and before I know it my team is clapping and cheering; we won second! We received our trophy and exited the stage.

Saturday 11:30 pm 

The bar was lit as if though only brown colors were present in it. The dim yellow lights made the place feel like an entirely different world to step into. Soon enough strobe lights disrupted the sepia palette and the party music started to pop. The after party for the comp was something my fellow teammates and I were especially excited for. My captain handed me and another freshman girl a bottle of orange juice and said “Drink, or else.” Celebrating with my team was filled with free spiritedness and proved the opposite of the stressful weekend we all had endured. In a flash of a moment all I could think was "Wow, I'm going to do this all over again and then, all over again once more for the next 2 weeks." I was feeling a mixture of feelings of excitement, anxiety, and was already exhausted.