Who are you, really?

Would you be able to sit down, right now, and write a book about yourself? What if someone was to be born 6 months from today, someone who would take your place; would you be able to write with enough truth, detail, and perspective that he or she could live the life that you did? That you are living right now?

I can't.

I can list things about myself. My likes, dislikes, hobbies...but I couldn't tell you who I am if my life depended on it. Who can? I mean, sure, go to a bookshelf and find autobiographies by the truck loads, but are any of them detailed enough to achieve the act of truly portraying who someone is?

I don't know what others think of me, not entirely and I don't think I want to know. I do know what I think of other people, and from a bystanders perspective, I could write a book about several of them. However, I wonder how much I would be missing. I'd venture to say any autobiography is missing at least 80% of what that person is all about. Why? Because we hide who we are. Whether we try to or not. On how many myspace pages can you find the words "I don't care what people think of me"? I don't know either, but there are over 13 million results on Google for that phrase. And I don't think there is a single person in this world who can say that in pure honesty.

If you don't care what others think, then why do you wear certain brands? Put on makeup? The car you drive, the music you listen to, the way you wear your hair, it's all been a-effected by your surroundings. I say 'a-effect' rather than 'effect' for two reasons: affect means to impress the mind or move the feelings of. effect means a mental or emotion impress produced. So it's both. Because that is exactly what everything around us does! Someone tells you they like your hair, you feel better about it. When someone puts you down, you feel 'put-down'. That's where the phrase came from kids. We are molded and shaped throughout our lifetimes, yes, but we are put through the fire on a daily basis.

So is it possible to write an instruction guide on how to be you? Maybe. But you have to write in it every single day until your dead.