"I'm different from who I was last year."
Ren reacted to Haru's murmur.
"Is that good or bad?"
"I don't know. But things I believed in before look different now."
Noa asked gently. "Specifically?"
"I used to think competition was important. But now I feel cooperation has more value."
Ren questioned. "Your values changed. Is that growth? Or instability?"
Haru looked confused. "I want to think it's growth, but... maybe lack of consistency is weakness."
"Interesting opposition," Ren said. "Viewing change as growth or as inconsistency."
Noa offered another perspective. "But does anyone stay completely unchanged?"
"Probably not," Ren admitted. "Experience always has an influence."
"Then should values change?" Haru asked.
"The normative 'should' is difficult," Ren considered. "Change is natural. Not something you can control by will."
Noa supplemented. "But there's some choice in how you change."
"What do you mean?"
"Whether you're open to new experiences or closed to them. That's a choice."
Haru was almost convinced. "So we can choose the direction of change?"
"Partially," Ren said. "Complete control is impossible, but you can influence it."
"Then is it okay to choose not to change?"
Noa answered quietly. "It depends. Rigid adherence is dangerous, but protecting core values is important."
"Core values?"
"Different for each person. Justice, honesty, kindness... the fundamentals that define a person."
Ren added. "Plato spoke of the 'Form of the Good.' Unchanging ultimate value."
"But does that actually exist?" Haru questioned.
"There's metaphysical debate. But practically, it's important for each person to have their own core."
Noa gave an example. "Surface preferences can change. But maintaining a value like 'don't lie.'"
"That's consistency," Haru understood.
"But," Ren pointed out, "sometimes lies are necessary. Absolute values are dangerous."
"Then what should we..."
Noa smiled. "There's no perfect answer. We have to keep making judgments while considering context."
Haru looked out the window. Trees change with seasons. But roots remain the same.
"Parts that change and parts that don't. Maybe we need both."
"Good insight," Ren said. "Aristotle taught the middle way. Avoiding extremes."
"Values also follow the middle way?"
"Too flexible or too rigid are both bad. It's about balance."
Noa added. "And that balance also changes with life stages."
Haru took a deep breath. "It's complex, but maybe that's what makes us human."
"Exactly," Ren nodded. "Complete consistency or complete fluidity - neither is human."
"So me changing is..."
"Natural," Noa said gently. "What's important is understanding why you changed."
Haru wrote something in their notebook. "I'll record changes in my values. To see my own trajectory."
"Good idea," Ren acknowledged. "Self-understanding is the starting point of philosophy."
The three quietly reflected. Changing and staying the same. Themselves, wavering between the two.
"There's no answer," Haru laughed.
"That's what makes it interesting," Noa replied.
Ren also smiled. "Continuing to ask is what philosophy is."