I have a very close relationship with my father – in many
ways, he’s exactly who I want to be, when I ‘grow up.’ I’ve come to appreciate
that this concept of a sharp delineation between child and adult is somewhat simplistic,
but all the same…if I were to pick the one adult I most want to emulate, it
would certainly be him. This is of some relevance to you, most esteemed reader,
because a conversation we have (him and I, that is) over and over is one
regarding my writing. I’m prone to a very dry, cerebral style of writing, which
can be somewhat disconcerting, I suppose – or at the very least, not necessarily
very engaging. He's always after me to engage at a personal level, and liven it up a bit! For the sake of
consideration, I will provide you with what might
have come here instead:
Human interaction is inherently contextual – everything we
do comes with a context, and it is only through some comprehension of context
that we can interact at all (or at least, with any success) with anyone else.
It is therefore necessary for me to provide you with some context! Let us
assume a hypothetical situation to illustrate my point. You come rather late to
a dinner party, hosted by some organization. Which is not entirely relevant.
When you arrive, the inhabitants are engaged in a serious debate. You at first
remain silent, not knowing enough of the context to contribute. But you quickly
pick up the gist, and eventually even join the dialogue. After some time, it
grows late, and people begin to leave. But even as they leave, others join,
until none of the original cast remains. And then, it becomes too late for you,
and you bow out. The conversation continues even after you have left, just as spirited
as when you arrived. Just so, I would like to provide you with some context, and
some background as to who I am, so my
decisions and reporting make some sense to you, if you choose to follow my
travels.
My name is Elias Szabo-Wexler, and I have just finished my
freshman year at Carnegie Mellon University, in the United States. I am a
chemical engineering student, with a minor in German. I hail from a small town
outside of Boston, in Massachusetts (also of the United States). It is there
that I met my girlfriend, a wonderful young woman from Germany! It is entirely
due to her that I started down the path that has led me to where I am today –
in fact, I’ll be studying in Düsseldorf partly because it’s quite close to her
home.
Unfortunately, we're no longer a couple (yep, it's a long story). For now, however, I’d say
you have a decent grasp of the relevant facts. This will be quite new for me,
and indeed quite new for you. So, in the words of my introductory German text
book, Auf Geht’s! (Let’s Go!)
