This I believe...

I believe in individuality. We are all separate organisms. Our bodies react differently to outside elements: temperature, chemicals, pain. Scientifically speaking, no two people are alike. We are all different sizes, shapes and colors. We all have different muscle densities, finger prints and hair textures. There are endless possible combinations. But this does not make us individuals.

 

A psychologist would say that every person’s brain develops and interprets adversely. Words like fear, love and faith stimulate a variety of emotions in different people. Some place their faith in God; others give it to themselves. Some people feel love from all the people that they encounter; others feel nothing at all. Many people are afraid of heights, but there are others who sky dive. Our emotions surely set us apart from one another, but they do not make us individuals either.

 

I believe that true individuality can only be achieved by those who aren’t afraid of who they are. Individuality doesn’t necessarily mean being different than anyone else. It is embracing your true self even if it is similar to your peers or nothing that the world has ever seen. It’s about not letting what others think or do influence who you want to be.

 

Individuality is occasionally rough. It sometimes means being misunderstood. It sometimes means being called names for the way you dress. It sometimes means being laughed at for your beliefs. You might find yourself spending time alone, or disliking too many people. You might find yourself being the one who is disliked. On very rare occasions you might find yourself running down the hall in tears because you’ve put up with it for too long.

 

However, there are other times when you look around at all the empty shells who blindly follow the leads of others and you smile to yourself because you know that even if you are a worse person, you are also your own person. This moment of complete peace makes it all worth it: all of the tears, the pain and the confusion.

 

I believe that individuality is not something that you’re born with or have a natural right to. It is a sense of clarity that you should hope to develop as you go through life. Most importantly, I believe that I am an individual. And I’m okay with that.