"Until there is a name, nothing is real."

Identity.
Who we are, what we are. What makes us who we are.


It is one thing to know how others see you, a spoiled brat, an underachiever, a bookworm... Your appearance and your actions define you for others. What you say, what you decide to do, what you accomplish, what you leave unsaid.
Some of the impression we leave is through the people we know. Who we've decided to befriend, how we deal with troublemakers, who we wish to converse with. Know thy friends, know thyself. It is an old truth that people seek similarity, to find familiarity.

It is another to know yourself. A lot of how we act is the result of a 'social contract', unwritten rules that define common social protocol to retain our standing, to be taken seriously. Break the rules, and you will become a lot less welcome in many circles. To increase our chances of being successful, of finding the perfect someone to spend your days with and to grow old with, we abide by those rules. We act as we have been taught, how we see fit to act in certain situations, trying to act 'human'. And by following the rules, we blend in, we wear a mask to hide who we really are. We may sometimes choose to do what is expected of us, we may sacrifice our inner child to make sure we have a future. That is fine, everybody has to do that, but what we must not forget is who we are. We are not simple creatures who cower from reality, we do not fall easily, even if it might appear we do. We keep pushing, even when it seems like we've given up. We are feisty, we are stubborn.
But the only way to show who we really are, what we feel inside, is by wearing a mask. To be ourselves, we follow the set of rules, because others do the same. It is the most basic thing we all share, that connects us. It is culture that helps us define who we are for others.
We are who we are, and we will never stop wearing our masks.