Story 1 vs. Story 2
Story #1
Growing up in a small town in Michigan, Alma and Brittney were inseparable. The two cousins shared everything – clothes, toys and imaginations. They both dreamed of one day meeting their Prince Charming and becoming a real Princess.
Despite the four year age gap, the two girls were attached at the hip. You wouldn’t find one without the other. That is, until shortly after Alma’s 11th birthday when Brittney’s dad got a job 400 miles away in Chicago. Brittney, then 15, cried as she hugged her younger cousin for the last time on the day of the move.
Despite the distance, the two remained close. Letters were sent, emails exchanged and Facebook messages shared. Alma’s family didn’t have the money to take a trip to Chicago, but every summer Brittany would return to her old stomping grounds to visit her favorite cousin.
After graduating from high school, Brittney enrolled in college. Alma was a little surprised at first. College never came up between the two in the past. What happened to marrying Prince Charming?
Brittney made a ton of new friends in college but she didn’t forget about her cousin. She sent constant emails and text messages taking about how great it was and how Alma just had to come visit. It didn’t take much prodding for Alma to agree. She worked a part time job to earn enough money for a flight.
On the flight to visit Brittney, Alma’s stomach was churning. She was excited and nervous. Very few people from her small town went to college. She really didn’t know what to expect. Brittney was nervous and excited too. She couldn’t wait to show her new school to her younger cousin.
When she arrived at the campus, Alma’s eyes lit up. Looking to her left, she saw beaming new buildings. Looking to her right she saw dozens of students playing Frisbee on a gorgeous grass field. She didn’t stop smiling as they walked around landscaped paths, seeing pools and libraries and even a coffee shop.
She had never seen anything like it. And she didn’t want to leave. Later she would write in her diary that weekend was the best weekend of her life. If Brittney could end up in college, so could she. She made a new life goal. Go to college.
Story #2
Down the street from Alma and Brittney lived Renee and Carrie. Just like Alma and Brittney, Renee and Carrie were four years apart but equally as inseparable. The two girls went everywhere together. Their favorite hangout was the mall where they dreamt of the dresses they would wear when they were picked as the first ever duo on the TV show The Bachelorette.
They still talked about those dresses even when Carrie’s dad got a job 400 miles away in Chicago. They constantly shared Tweets and SnapChats showing how much they missed one another. Money was tight for Renee’s family but Carrie managed to come visit every summer.
When Carrie enrolled in college, Renee was happy for her cousin but shocked nonetheless. You don’t need a college degree to be on The Bachelorette. Based on the way contestants on that show acted, Renee was sure of that.
Despite the difficult course load, Carrie kept up the Tweets and SnapChats. She even convinced her cousin to save enough money to come visit.
Renee was super excited but also nervous to visit her cousin. She wasn’t close to anyone who had gone to college.
When she arrived at the campus, Renee stomach dropped. The giant buildings on her left were overwhelming. She felt judged but the group of people playing Frisbee on her right. She couldn’t help but feel like everyone was looking at her.
Growing up in a small poor town, she didn’t have access to pools or libraries as nice as the ones Carrie showed her. It was then that she realized how little she had back home. This was a painful realization.
She wanted to leave immediately. Later in her diary she wrote that it was the worst weekend of her life. Carrie had changed. She was now too good for her old small town. The trip just a confirmation for Renee that she would never be able to go to college.
Story #1 vs. Story #2
Each story is an example of exposure. Alma and Renee were exposed to something they had never seen before — college. Both girls had the same background but their reactions could not have been more opposite.
Alma wanted to stay forever. Renee couldn’t wait to escape. Alma focused on the things she had never seen before. Renee was fixed on the things that didn’t look like what she had access to.
The moment each girl stepped on campus, they saw the other side of the tracks. What they saw looked better than what they had back home. This caused a dramatic reaction.
Alma decide this college life was possible. Renee decided this college life was impossible.
Do we experience exposure and see something that can be done because right in front of us are people who are actually doing it? Or do we experience exposure and see something that can’t be don’t because right in front of us, the only ones who are doing it, are people who are not like us?
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