Setting aside two previous opinion pieces, I want to talk about people. (I promise I will come back with the series.) By people, I mean the different individuals I have encountered in life. Although I am not a social person who meets thousands of people and has hundreds of friends, I know enough to realize that no two human beings are the same. The world is too big to explore everything, but small enough to cross paths with lives that are so different from yours.
Before entering university, I lived in a small community. Naturally, I didn’t have many opportunities to meet a wide range of people. I also didn’t seek out social activities, as I genuinely enjoyed spending time alone. With my personality and lifestyle, I only needed a few close friends to meet occasionally. However, university life shifted that dynamic entirely. While I only had eight classmates in high school, now in university, I have hundreds in the same grade and hundreds more in the upper grades. At first, just knowing a few of them was overwhelming. Sometimes, I got exhausted from meeting new people and even questioned whether it was necessary.
Yet, as I grew closer to more people, I realized each individual is incredibly unique and special. The more I talked with friends, the more surprised I became by how different they were from me. Even those who seemed similar on the surface turned out to have distinct perspectives and emotional responses. I especially noticed this when my friends became emotional about events I considered trivial. To me, they seemed overly sensitive, but to them, I appeared cold and indifferent. Through these kinds of moments, I discovered both my strengths and my weaknesses. I am calm and easygoing, but also slow to recognize emotional changes in others. Had I not known them, I would never have known myself so clearly.
With this realization, interaction with different people became a mirror – an image to perceive myself. Differences were no longer something to be avoided or judged but rather admired. I began to recognize the beauty in individuality, seeing each person as uniquely shaped by their strengths, talents, and stories.
Unfortunately, Korean society often seems hostile toward differences. We tend to group people by similarities — those with shared interests, backgrounds, beliefs, or lifestyles. In a culture where the whole is often valued more than the individual, people are encouraged to mold themselves to fit into a box. How others perceive us matters so much that we silence ourselves and follow what others do.
In such a culture, uniqueness is often seen as a risk rather than a strength. Those who stand out are quickly labeled, questioned, or even excluded. Instead of embracing individuality, we are taught to read the room, adjust ourselves, and avoid making waves. This pressure to conform runs deep, from how we speak and dress to the careers we choose and the lives we build. And slowly, without realizing it, many lose touch with their voices and colors, hidden beneath layers of sameness that were never truly theirs. We should remember that differences are what make us ourselves. Remember. You are special.
