People are so funny. I was speaking to my dad about it last night actually, how so many people (especially teens and pre-teens) have this intense urge for identity establishment. Now, I'm all for this act, i believe it is very important to have your own individuality and establish who you are (see my first post). But identity establishment should be for yourself more than for how others see you.

Take my younger sister for example (this is not a criticism of her, just an observation with a hint of nostalgia). She has started secondary school this year and it rapidly approaching the teenage years. I find it so amusing to watch her attempt to catagorise herself and her friends, which she does very often. She, like so many others her age, has this want to label and package themselves into these little, narrow, easy to define and describe boxes. I listen to her describe her clique to me...

"so-and-so is the arty one that loves animals and the environment and the colour green. Then theres so-and-so whos the math science sort of person, shes really into reading and always complains about how badly shes gonna do on a test then aces it. And then theres me; I'm the music one whos really into fashion and customising my stuff and loves singing and dancing and drama."

Now, I know that yes, I did this when I was a little younger as well, albeit hopefully to a lesser extent, but I still find it so amusing to see these young people perceive and communicate in this way.

Whilst speaking with my dad yesterday, I told him about this observation of mine, I don't think he was on exactly the same wavelength, he was thinking of it in more of an overall, long term self-discovery perspective (which I agree is highly important). But I was saying to him how thats not what this is. This act of persona building that I am describing in young people is far more about how they wish to present themselves to others and how they want themselves represented in other peoples minds. It has almost nothing to do with finding out who they naturally are! In fact, in some instances, I think people may actually delay their self discovery "journey" but catagorising themselves into such small confined boxes.

Ones personality, and consequently their life, does not have to conform to a cluster of similar fields. Just because someone enjoys listening to music and singing, doesn't mean they necessarily like to dance. Just because someone has an interest and innate predisposition to math, doesn't mean they enjoy physics OR that they do not intensely enjoy reflecting upon the big picture and observing human nature (just a hypothetical person of course).

I just think that people today, especially young people, need to worry themselves less with how other people catagorise them and more about who they themselves really are.

By me, who is "the math and science geeky type"...who also designs and sews her own garments, wishes everyone would use renewable energy and has an obsession with real estate.