Who You Are

You are who you are.  That’s enough for starters.  Nobody can expect you to be anyone or anything other than who you are. 

But, “underneath the hood”, you’re very likely much more than just who you are or appear to be NOW.  You have incredible potential and you’re still becoming.  No matter what age or station, you remain under development toward the core “more” that’s in you for the duration. 

Some learn their stripes and/or cast their lot very early in life as to WHO it is they are going to be.  (If you happen to have black and white stripes, you’re probably a zebra; black and orange, you’re probably a tiger.  If “Red and yellow, black and white …”, you’re identity is probably up for grabs.)  But, for some, there’s no question. 

Even before I started reading “Team of Rivals” by Doris Kearns Goodwin, I thought Abraham Lincoln demonstrated intrinsically ingrained “Presidential” qualities.  He seemed to have been “Presidential” from the very beginning: He had impeccably high standards, ideals and expectations; he had great vision and saw a world in great need; he positioned himself to understand and effectively engage in the affairs of men; and he capacitized himself to the hilt so he could serve as an effective “change agent”. 

Mozart knew well before age 5 (when he completed his first formal composition) that he would be a musician. 

Most of the rest of us are more or less doomed to muddle through and make whatever we can of ourselves in the pilgrimage with whatever we’ve got ... the lucky ones finally figuring it out once they “arrive” at their Destiny; others after they pass through some critical mass of “Defining Moments”.  Some never quite “get it”.    

Truncation of the “becoming” process and adoption/declaration of an ill-fitting identity can be disconcerting at best and devastating in the extreme. 

Parade Magazine, January 1, 2012, included profiles of two prominent individuals who have had to reinvent themselves several times:

Mika Brzezinski: “I rose to the top – then was fired on my 39^th birthday … after months of looking, I landed a job in PR.  Just when I was about to take it, I found myself blurting out, ‘I’m not perfect for this job, but I have a friend who is.’  I had to go back to who I was … If your gut is telling you something loud and clear, sometimes it’s all you’ve got.  Don’t apologize.  Be very clear [about what “fits”], what your value is and what you bring to the table.”

Joe Scarborough:  “I got elected to Congress at 31.  [To be closer to family], I quit during my fourth term to become a small-town lawyer.  It took a while to reconnect with who I was.  When I quit my law practice to be a conservative TV host on a liberal network, my friends called me crazy.  But I’ve learned if I followed my gut and worked harder than everybody else, it would pay off.  Here is my formula for success: Wake up before everybody else.  Go to sleep later than everybody else.  Work harder and smarter than anybody else.  And love what you’re doing.” 

Finally, the story is told of a young lad “given up” by his core family to be raised by his grandmother. 

One of his grandmother’s stipulations was that the boy attend church each Sunday.  She sang in the choir and he sat in the back pew, wanting to minimize his involvement and position himself for a fast get-away at the end of the service.  The minister noticed the boy early in the going and wanted to make him feel welcome.  But, Sunday after Sunday, he could never catch the lad following services before he escaped.  On Easter Sunday, the choir did a recessional, which blocked the usual escape route out the front door, and the minister finally caught up with him.  Taking the boy’s hand and giving him the warmest greeting he could muster, the minister asked “Now, who’s boy are you?”  The lad was obviously taken aback and there was a deafening silence for what seemed like an interminable moment.  Then, suddenly, the minister exclaimed, “Oh, I think I see a resemblance here.  You’re a Child of God, aren’t you!” 

Wow!  Perspective makes a world of difference! 

Importantly, it’s not so much what we DO but WHO we are that should define us and be our primary reference point.  If we are true to who we really are, we will do what we’re supposed to do. 

“Every Who down in Whoville, they knew who they were.

The Grinch couldn’t stop THEIR Christmas, and it ruffled his fur!”

[Adaptation from “How The Grinch Stole Christmas” by Dr. Seuss]

 

“Find your inner “WHO”.

Be the best YOU/WHO you can be.

And always be true to the YOU/WHO you really are.”

Quartermaster