“Please, help me! Let me out! How do you open a door without a handle?” I asked myself as I realized I could not get out of the freezer with the 5’x 8’ door. I waited a few moments, laughing at myself, but then my situation wasn’t quite so humorous. I realized it was slightly cold where I was and nearly thought I was going to die! I endeavored to escape, but to no avail. Nothing was working! However, I could not give up hope and just when I was about to think all was lost, it wasn’t. Suddenly, the enormous door stirred, I looked up, and one of the cooks was staring down at me dumbfounded. Not knowing what else to do, but yearning for an optimistic stance, I just held my head high and walked out of that freezer as if nothing had ever happened and said, “Thanks,” which I hope he understood, having previously assumed that he only spoke Spanish.
Now that I look back on the occasion, I sometimes wonder what the cook may have been thinking. Why was he starring at me in such an astonished manner? What did he think of me just randomly popping out of the freezer? He never saw me enter the freezer after all. How long did he think I was in there? What did he think I was doing in there all alone? Did he know that I couldn’t get out of the freezer? If so, does he think that all English-speaking Americans are alike and can’t get themselves out of certain situations? What might he think of teenagers or females?
Well, it doesn’t matter. Whatever he thought, or anybody else thought that may have seen me emerge, it does not matter, simply because it is not important. In other words, I should not allow what others assume or verbalize concern me a great deal. I remember what one of my friends told me once. He said, “It doesn’t matter what anybody else thinks. It only matters what you think.”
These few sentences mean so much to me. Not only did they come from a beloved friend of mine, but what he said has literally changed my life. In fact, what he said has helped me out on more than one occasion. If I ever find myself thinking too much about what others might be thinking or saying about me, I recall what he said, and it gives me added strength and helps build my character. Thus, whenever I discover myself even considering bogus thoughts from outside sources, I often hear the simple reminder, “It doesn’t matter what anybody else thinks. It only matters what you think.”