Picture courtesy of sAeroZar on Flickr

Let’s face it.  Life throws experiences at us every day.  When we let that experience define as a whole, we limit any potential for growth.  A blogger posted her bio.  A mum with kids, one on the way, her mother died unexpectedly, her brother committed suicide shortly after.  I felt her sadness and I also felt the darkness that permeated her life.  This experience as it was stated in her bio, not in a post, had become the way she saw herself.  I am not trying  to trivialize her tragedy.  The sadness of her loss must be with her every moment of her days.  I started thinking how experience defines who we are.

There are moments which have such huge impact on our lives.  There are small every day moments that may not have a instantaneous impact but still molds our spirit.  What types of events have a stronger impact on how we see ourselves?

Certain events in my life have defined who I was for a period of time.  A serious relationship ended by the discovery of an affair, a long illness, giving birth.  Though these events defined me completely during those periods, they eventually became a part of my life experiences.  Wisdom earned to draw upon when I need strength and perspective.

What defines us seems to be not just the event, small or large but how long we process it and move forward.  Some are better at this then others  (Think about a woman in an abusive relationship who leaves that one to venture into another).  Some have less dramatic defining events to add  to their experiences than others.

The most important thing to realize is that defining yourself must be an evolving process.  We are not single faceted.  We are more than just our profession, life circumstances or personality traits.  We are all a little bit of everything.  Defining ourselves in a limited manner only limits our possibilities.  The world does that to us as it is, why should we do it to ourselves as well?

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Post tags: Individuality, Self Worth, Wisdom