Ruben Holly Facing Judgement Head On

by Sarah Morrow
Ruben Holly ran down a hospital corridor, syringes in hand.
It is inevitable to jump to the worst of conclusions. The baseless judgment that Holly faces each day is unyielding, however, it is this adversity that pushes him to be more understanding.
Upon talking to Holly, it is evident that he is much more than a misfit teen in need of an attitude adjustment. Holly volunteers regularly at Haywood Hospital, where his mother is the outpatient supervisor. The sixteen-year-old volunteers as a hospital delivery boy, bringing everything from diapers to emergency fluids to hospital employees. Dealing with everyone from receptionists to clinical psychiatrists, Holly claims to be a living breathing sociology experiment. Volunteering gives Holly insight on how those in high-stress environments react to strangers, difficult situations, and the changing environment around them.
As part of the job, Holly is always being thrown into the midst of the most stressful hospital situations. Holly says he just tries to “Keep calm and try to stay out of the way, all I’m doing is helping these people do their job.” For someone so selfless and reliable, it would be expected that he would be treated in a professional manner. Nevertheless, Holly claims that this job has taught him how much “society has trained people to judge each other… it’s really sad sometimes.” Unbeknownst to these professionals, they aren’t the only one’s studying patients. They are all unknowingly being observed by Holly’s watchful eye.
“I just love to study people, the way they react, it gives insight to who they really are,” said Holly. The motive behind his volunteering is truly just to watch others.
When a professional reacts to a polite young man with disdain because of his long hair and piercings, it’s disheartening. Holly says that many workers think his volunteering is court-mandated, a punishment, when it is in fact just because of his own hunt for knowledge. When these doctors and nurses realize that his mother is one of their colleagues, their reactions quickly change. “It’s like they love me right away, just because they know who my mother is. Sometimes it hurts that it is not genuine from the start,” Holly reiterates. He wonders if he never told them his connection, if they would continue to judge him based solely on appearance, instead of getting to know him. “I was raised to be a polite guy,” he said, “I open doors and I always use ‘sir’ and ‘maam’, so for these people to stereotype me based on the fact that I have long hair can be difficult.”
Ultimately, Holly plans to put this knowledge to work for him. Studying the human mind would be useful in any field of work, but Holly has his goals set high. “I would really like to be a United Nation’s Ambassador,” he said, “I think I’d be good. It’s a lot about connecting with people from different situations, and the fact that I know how the mind works can definitely help me to evaluate how they think.”
Although Holly is painfully aware of how difficult it may be to overcome judgment, it is also an integral part in human relationships. Holly finished our brief interview by stating, “I just want to use this to help the greater good.”