Favoritism vs. Diplomacy

This picture is completely unrelated to the post.

I just wanted to share it.

Sometime in high school, while I was evaluating myself, I realized I didn't have much in the way of favorites. I decided I had to change that.

It wasn't that I didn't have passion and goals; it was that when asked, "What's your favorite meal? What's your favorite hangout place? What's your favorite season? What's your favorite book?" I didn't have an answer. I knew what I liked, but all of my likes blended together. No one seemed to stick out as an obvious choice above the others.

That seemed like it was wrong to me, so I pondered many different aspects of my life, hoping to reach a point at which I could say with confidence, "Spinach wrap-up lasagna. The coffee shop downtown. Autumn." I learned many things about myself and found many answers.

Of course, in some areas, I still couldn't identify any one favorite thing. I still can't tell you any one favorite book; instead, I have to rattle off a list of at least five. I have no favorite outfit or favorite dessert (though I can tell you what I don't like). I don't have a favorite movie.

Some things just aren't that simple for me. And as I considered that yesterday, I realized it's not so much a matter of lacking favorites as it's a matter of liking many, many things. I see merits in many different things, places, people, and it's near impossible to say that I like one above all others because of that.

So in theory, I might have made a good diplomat.

If I didn't hate politics.