BY KAHA G. – 14 YEARS OLD
In modern day society, we tend to follow the crowd and disguise ourselves to be seen by the world as normal. When in reality, we shouldn’t try to act or dress in a way to fit in with others, but we should embrace who we are. Keep in mind that not everyone is going to like you, and it’s mostly because they haven’t found who they truly are. Therefore, they project their insecurities on you, but the easy way to get rid of them is to ignore them. If the world doesn’t like how you roll, then “You have to decide who you are and force the world to deal with you, not its idea of you.” (James Baldwin)
The truth is that sometimes we are clueless on where to start when finding our inner self, and that’s perfectly fine because there’s no way to know what our interests are right away. We have to invest in ourselves over time to sculpt our genuine self. For instance, during the past few years I’ve found out that I enjoy media literacy. In elementary school I was certain that I didn’t have any interest in subjects, but with time I found my passion. On the contrary, your dreams can change over time, so don’t think you have to stick to one thing for your entire life.
Now, I want you to imagine that everyone on the face of this earth is the same. All the way to how we dress, act, express ourselves, etc. It would be like we’re stuck in a never-ending cycle of déjà vu, right? Well, that’s the thing we try to make ourselves appear normal, because if we acted in a way that expresses our authentic self it would be deemed as weird. Furthermore, everyone is unique in their own special way, and until you recognize that “It is not your duty to be average, it is your duty to set a higher example for others to follow,” like Lincoln Alexander states, then we will be trapped not living our lives to the fullest.
In conclusion, by showing our real self, it will encourage others to come out of their “protective layer.”
