Learning to embrace the things that bring her true happiness has been an ongoing journey for Eurie, who told us--in true immigrant kid fashion--about her recent decision to venture away from the expectation of pursuing a degree in business or engineering. In the spirit of a lot of genuinely pivotal moments, this decision was born out of rejection. After not being admitted to her intended engineering program, Eurie resolved to embrace the unknown and the unexpected, instead of being overcome by it. Part of this new journey has forced Eurie to shift perspective on how her life “should” be, and accept that maybe she won’t always know what the plan is in the end.
Embracing the things that bring her joy has extended well beyond school. When we met up with Eurie, she pulled up ready to do a shoot in her ‘98 Toyota Sienna--a car that her dad had surprised her mom with when she was a kid, before becoming her own car when she turned eighteen. For Eurie, her car has always represented something bigger and better, and despite how much she says her friends make fun of her for its scratches, missing taillight, or its sheer size--she drives it with pride, and embraces it as part of her style, and part of her history. “It’s a big car--obviously way too big for me,” the 5’2 student tells us, “But it’s helped me move into my dorm, my apartment--it’s been there with me through thick and thin.”
OUTFIT DETAILS
OUTFIT DETAILS
Eurie’s authenticity and acceptance of who she is and things she likes didn’t just happen overnight. She emphasizes the importance of reflection and meditation. She cites faith as an important way for her to reflect and ease her mind, but she also talks about the importance of drawing strength and inspiration from the way the people around her choose to live their lives. This has been more useful than doing things out of fear of meeting the expectation of others. Instead, she takes the time to see how those around her bring authenticity into their lives, and how she can draw upon that same sort of resilience and truth in her own life. She explained to us that, “looking at the people I admire most in my life, they have one thing in common. They are so raw and true to who they are. Some are energetic and loud, others shy and timid. And that is ok! Being true looks like such a natural glow on them, and in turn, feels so genuine to others. Get rid of the mentality of what society deems as ‘normal’ and beautiful. Once you realize that normal and beautiful is YOU, it is so freeing.”
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Interview Series: Eurie Dessie
Picking the thing that makes you happy shouldn’t be that hard. When something sparks a bit of joy in us, you would think all we had left to do is ride that wave of dopamine straight to it--whether that means pursuing the job we love, or styling our hair in the way we always liked. But often times that bit of magic gets lost in expectations from ourselves, and from the people around us. We don’t pursue the things that make us happy out of fear or expectation of the kinds of things that should make us happy. For Eurie Dessie, a student at UW, the past year has been about just that: embracing the things that bring her joy--even when they aren’t what she expected.