Who Do You Think You Are?

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Abstract

at’s true.</p><p id="24c5">I remember being eighteen years old and talking with my aunt who was about 45 or so at the time. We were talking about how we felt and how we acted and our overall experiences with the world.</p><figure id="b671"><img src="https://cdn-images-1.readmedium.com/v2/resize:fit:800/0*-OlKDIXYfKCierAt"><figcaption>Photo by <a href="https://unsplash.com/@britozour?utm_source=medium&utm_medium=referral">Briana Tozour</a> on <a href="https://unsplash.com?utm_source=medium&utm_medium=referral">Unsplash</a></figcaption></figure><p id="699e">She told me, in her mind, she was just like me. She felt and thought the same way she did at eighteen. She felt on par with me, more like sisters or friends instead of middle-aged aunt and teenage niece.

I distinctly remember looking at her and thinking to myself, “No Way!”

I had no trouble whatsoever differentiating between our two generations.

And now, I fear, I have crossed that great divide. I think my mind is young and fresh and open to the world around me (just as my aunt did). The world around me looks back and sees someone much older and clearly less vibrant and in touch with the pulse of today (just as I did when talking to my aunt).</p><p id="6146">Who do you think you are?

Are you the same person you have always been, just a little more ripe and mature? Or do you see yourself as a new version of your former self?

Do others see the changes that have come with the years and experience of your life? Do you even care what anyone else thinks? (Another critically important factor in the maturing process)</p><p id=

Options

"7e09">I’m not ready to give in to the aging process — not because I care what the world thinks — but because my competition keeps looking back unblinkingly at me from the mirror. I know what I’m capable of accomplishing. I still have fresh dreams and new goals that I don’t want to give up on.

I am still being challenged by my alter ego. I still accept the challenge.</p><p id="def8"><b>RECENT STORIES</b></p><div id="f19b" class="link-block"> <a href="https://readmedium.com/im-looking-forward-to-my-next-failure-caabcb98e843"> <div> <div> <h2>I’m Looking Forward to my Next Failure</h2> <div><h3>It’s the only way I can ever hope to succeed.</h3></div> <div><p>medium.com</p></div> </div> <div> <div style="background-image: url(https://miro.readmedium.com/v2/resize:fit:320/0*N5X3zaS5YRtHiewv)"></div> </div> </div> </a> </div><div id="ff58" class="link-block"> <a href="https://readmedium.com/letter-to-my-much-older-self-729ae75fe7fb"> <div> <div> <h2>Letter to My Much Older Self</h2> <div><h3>This is how I hope to reflect upon my life many years from now.</h3></div> <div><p>medium.com</p></div> </div> <div> <div style="background-image: url(https://miro.readmedium.com/v2/resize:fit:320/0*msCjeCUjcKznfp4m)"></div> </div> </div> </a> </div></article></body>

Who Do You Think You Are?

Does the world see the same person you see when you look in the mirror?

I was flipping through an old photo album (from back in the day when we stored pictures physically in albums instead of in cyberspace) and noticed something about myself. I think I looked pretty good back then, even if I do say so myself. I was clearly happy, healthy and a bit thinner than I am today. My hair color came from nature — now it comes from my beautician. My natural energy for living kept my weight under control — now scheduled exercise time at the gym is necessary to maintain my overall health. I stepped back to take a look in the mirror, then looked back at the photos. My eyes darted back and forth a few times between the mirror and the photos. I’m still the same person — sort of. I’m desperately trying to convince myself of that. I can easily recognize myself, and I’m sure everyone who knows me would have no problem picking me out of a lineup. I still think the same way. I process the world a little differently — due mostly, I like to tell myself, to my maturity (maturity in a good sense, not in the sense of being old).

I’m still me — please tell me that’s true.

I remember being eighteen years old and talking with my aunt who was about 45 or so at the time. We were talking about how we felt and how we acted and our overall experiences with the world.

She told me, in her mind, she was just like me. She felt and thought the same way she did at eighteen. She felt on par with me, more like sisters or friends instead of middle-aged aunt and teenage niece. I distinctly remember looking at her and thinking to myself, “No Way!” I had no trouble whatsoever differentiating between our two generations. And now, I fear, I have crossed that great divide. I think my mind is young and fresh and open to the world around me (just as my aunt did). The world around me looks back and sees someone much older and clearly less vibrant and in touch with the pulse of today (just as I did when talking to my aunt).

Who do you think you are? Are you the same person you have always been, just a little more ripe and mature? Or do you see yourself as a new version of your former self? Do others see the changes that have come with the years and experience of your life? Do you even care what anyone else thinks? (Another critically important factor in the maturing process)

I’m not ready to give in to the aging process — not because I care what the world thinks — but because my competition keeps looking back unblinkingly at me from the mirror. I know what I’m capable of accomplishing. I still have fresh dreams and new goals that I don’t want to give up on. I am still being challenged by my alter ego. I still accept the challenge.

RECENT STORIES