The journey to be oneself

In today's world, we are used to being disguised. Whether for the fear of rejection by others or for the fear of disappointing ourselves. Often, we are simply afraid to find out who we really are. But not always are we disguised or afraid. Sometimes we simply go through life thinking we are something that we are not. We mistake the identity that we have created for ourselves for our real soul. And this is a big challenge on the journey of finding ourselves: not to be deceived by what seems to be our personality on the surface, but to dig deeper and find out who we really are. College is known as one of the best places to embark on this journey.

But why is the journey known to be so risky? Besides the fact that it is easy to mistake whats on the outside for whats on the inside, there are deeper, more important, and therefore, more dangerous risks that come with being oneself. In my understanding, one of those is is the fact that others don't always accept us for who we are. That is a well known truth. However, a less well known, yet such a simple fact is that we, ourselves, don't always accept us for who we are. So what is the danger of fully accepting not only our strengths but also, weaknesses that none of us is spared of? Everybody wants to be perfect, that is why. And with accepting and acting fully like ourselves and not superheroes that we all want to be, comes a high possibility of disappointment and confusion. What if someone who thought himself brave and courageous finds out he is in reality a coward? Imagine the disappointment and devastation that person must feel. Therefore, perhaps even harder than finding out who we are is accepting who we are. The answer is to learn to love oneself completely and to embrace self-identity.

Without knowing of ourselves, we are lost in this world. As cliché as it sounds, we cannot begin to try to understand the world around us without first understanding ourselves at the deepest, most personal levels. It is so beautiful to be the way we really are, without fear, without any limitations, that I sometimes wonder why so many people try to deceive themselves and those around them. From the beginning of time, philosophers, scientists, fortune tellers and all the other people were searching for the Truth, so why is everybody running away from it? Truth- it is greater than any of us will ever be, why not make ourselves, in body and soul, a small part of it?

I have always valued honesty. The ability of being fair and honest is at the top of my list of values, along with the ability to be kind and compassionate. I have tried my best to be honest with those around me, but moreover, with myself. For those reasons I think that I have made considerable progress in my journey of understanding myself. However, college will definitely change life as I know it. I am looking forward to the exciting new experience of living on campus. Despite all the influences I will encounter, I have promised myself that I will not compromise my values and will stay true to myself. It is easy to get carried away by the desire to be accepted among classmates at college. That is one of the biggest dangers of not being able to find oneself during this extremely important college years.. Of course it is important to form good, lasting friendships, but it is even more important to do so without compromising who one is as a person. If a student changes his personality and becomes somebody who his friends want him to be, somebody other than his true self, he is lost. Despite numerous challenges and temptations that a student will encounter during college years, it is the perfect place to discover oneself with which comes the realization of one's real dreams and goals, and to, ultimately, begin leading a beautiful life.

God has created such a beautiful and balanced world. The core of our being- our souls are as beautiful as the world around us. I believe that only knowing, really knowing who we are on the inside will result in us being more in tune with the outside world. The journey of becoming and staying yourself always, no matter the situation, is not easy. One may encounter disappointment and will certainly experience a great deal of confusion along the way. But one must have the courage and character to continue, despite the difficulties. It is a long, but rewarding journey of understanding and enlightenment. A journey that one day will lead to the individual's true happiness, and perhaps, if more and more people start to look into their souls for answers instead of their minds that work on the “survival of the fittest” principal, we will all live in a better world.