Photo by Richard Thompson on Unsplash
“We are what we remain after we remove all the superficial influences.”
None of us are original or authentic. In truth, we’re a blend of people, experiences and things we stuffed in our heads as we grew up. The question is, what would we become if we stripped-off all those worldly influences?
Let’s think of it this way
The words ‘be yourself’ are liberating and confusing at the same time. Liberating because they convince you that you’re acceptable and lovable the way you are. And confusing because they arouse the big existential question … Who am I?
But let’s admit it: we don’t know who we are
There’s a subtle existential crisis around us. People are trying to find who they are, their core. And everyone’s equally confused.
Teenagers dress up like those Instagram influencers. Adults turn into people pleasers. At some point, we all act like what we’re not.
No matter how desperately we wish to prove that we’re “original” we’re not. That fact is, we’ve crafted our identities from all the worldly influences, from the random chaos around us.
We picked the bits we like, glued them together, and made something to define ourselves. Though, that doesn’t make us pure copycats.
Then what makes us, us?
It’s impossible to stay a blank slate.
But at our core, we’re all real people. There’s a part within us that can’t be snatched. It’s still untouched by the external world, that’s who we are.
It’s time to stay honest to that part.
The world messes with us
We’re constantly being chiseled by the external influences.
In the past few years, I’ve gone through a huge emotional fluctuation and transition while constantly questioning myself “Is this me? What am I becoming?”
When I dared to be true to myself, I felt like I was becoming a copy of other people, their opinions and a jumble of the other mashed thoughts.
The fact is, it’s hard to form and settle with a stable self-image when we go through so many rapid changes. So we can only remain patient and let life unfold. But the attempt to remain yourself is worth it.
Summing it up
After all the ups and downs and rights and lefts, all I can say is what matters the most is to not going too far away from that honest part within.
We can remain true to ourselves. We can also choose who we want to become. And without getting affected by the unnecessary worldly influences, we can freely be who we are.
That’s enough.