Definition Essay On Who We Are

A defining moment is a point at which a situation is clearly seen to start a change. Defining moments can happen at any point in one's life. In class we read multiple of stories with different defining moments. The two that stuck out to me were “ I Want to Be Miss America” and “Here’s Herbie”.

Amy Lyles Wilson father’s passed away and left her mom widowed. Her mom now had to deal with not only grief but learning to do many things that she had never done before. She was a fast learner so learning how to do things she’s never done before wasn’t hard, it just took courage. For example, pump her own gas or any car mechanics but even throughout the obstacles that her mom had been challenged with after her dad passed away she learned that always, and she means always, you keep going.

to a brittle little lady who had lost all hope of getting better, I really believe that if she had

There are many aspects that are apart of developing a person’s identity and sense of who they are. We are fully responsible for the outcome of our life according to Sarte. There are no excuses in life and we are responsible for our successes and for our failures. Whether we choose to sit back and wait for whatever to happen around us or take action and try to go out and make the changes you want in your life, you are responsible for all the lows and the highs. Our values are formed from the decisions we make, which help us form our identity. The decisions you make in life have an impact on you’re happiness. This can be through making a difference in the world or finding love or having a successful career.

Since her tragic accident, she has dealt with the physical consequences of quadriplegia: the daily pain, the frail bones weakened by lack of use, the danger of bladder infections, and the potential for pressure sores or a collapsed lung. Also, Joni is conformed to a wheelchair for most of her day and relies heavily on caregivers for some of the most basic tasks (“Sweet Surrender” 39). Upon being in the hospital and receiving her diagnosis, Joni went into a deep depression with the memories of asking her friends to assist her in suicide. She felt disconnected from life, but was encouraged by her close friend, Steve, who shared the Word of God with her. He often came by her side and they would study the Bible together. The question that often burdened Joni was: Why would God let this happen? She discovered that it was part of a big puzzle that changed her perspective of life (“Joni’s Life Story”). After two years of rehabilitation from her injuries, Joni was determined to make something of herself and to help others who were dealing with situations similar to hers. In 2010, Joni received a stage three breast cancer diagnoses. In an interview, she says her outlook of God's word had not changed and she goes back to certain Bible passages to bring her healing and hope. Yet again, Joni faced another life-threatening condition that could have taken her life. She kept trusting God and no matter what happened, she knew she

There are many factors that shape us into who we are, and who we will become. Some of these factors we can control, while others we cannot. While we are born into many traits of our identities, much of our other behavior is learned. My identity, for example, is “based not only on responses to the question ‘Who am I?’ but also on responses to the question ‘Who am I in relation to others?’” (Allen, 2011, p. 11). My identity and the question of who I am, are both influenced by many aspects of my life, including my hometown, my family, my friends, and my beliefs and moral values.

Who We Are is determined by our individual growth and development. According to Erik Erikson (1971) eight stage developmental theory, humans continue to develop throughout their entire lifespan from birth until death. Each stage representing a key aspect in the development of one’s identity, and personality, and overall well-being. Our personal identity gives each of us an integrated and cohesive sense of self that endures and continues to grow as we age (Santrock 2009). These elements are influenced by factors such as socioeconomic status, location, culture, spiritual beliefs, and meeting of the basic human need. They determine how we grow, develop, and live our daily lives. Traveling through each stage in life from youth, adolescence, and adulthood, we must identify our strength and weaknesses through our choices, experiences, trauma, and death. Each experience influences our structure as it relates to adaptability, resilience, and help identity the consciousness of self. This development analysis is the journey through my life emphasizing on my personal growth and development setting the stage to the person that writes this paper reflecting on her life choices, and experiences in several forms (physically, mentally, and spiritually).

September 15 was a day I won’t forget I was scared for my friend Donavin he was 13 and had to get surgery on his neck, he had a 50% of making it through the surgery. I sat in the waiting room for what seemed like days, I ended up sleeping on the floor of the waiting room to get good or bad news. It was 5:00 pm when the nurse can in I got out of my seat as my sister held my hand tight. “He made it through the surgery would you like to see him” the nurse said. Without saying anything to the nurse, I ran to the room and opened the door with tears, my eyes waiting to see his face. I walked over and saw him sleeping, I layed next to him and hugged him like I have not seen him in forever, I was glad to see him doing well. By wanting to stay with a friend in the hospital, I was showing that I cared for that person. The characters of Sandra from “Geraldo no last name” and Liesel from the book thief showed that they care about people they don’t know.

Ms. Pink: You are truly using your pain to fuel your purpose. You are not just using what you’ve been through but you're also using the things you have experienced as a friend of someone who is going through

“What makes us human?”, is an unanswered question asked by many. Is it because of our ability to have empathy for others? Or is it because of our cognitive ability which allows us to look into the future? One of the main arguments made that separates humans from animals is our communication style; our language. Is language inherently unique to human? To answer such a question, we first operationally define language as; “a system of communication based upon words and the combination of words into sentences” (University of Oslo). The purpose of language is for us to be able to convey an infinite amount of ideas to one another. Sign language in general also falls under this definition as it has a complex system of rules and syntax that allow the signed figures to function as words. Animal communication on the other hand, is operationally defined as, “the transmission of a signal from one animal to another such that the sender benefits, on average, from the response of the recipient” (Pearce 1987). With this in mind, current research has shown that the answer is that language is inherently unique to humans.

It was Friedrich Nietzschehas who said, “What doesn’t kill you makes, you stronger”. I like to call these moments in a person’s life, “defining moments”. Additionally, I like most people, have had a few of these “defining moments”; probably more than one person should. Growing up, I had a hard time accepting one of my “won’t kill you-make you stronger” moments. It was a moment of betrayal and deceit, inflicted upon by a person I trusted fully and completely, with my life. My mother.

The age old question of what it means to be human can be answered through many viewpoints. There are several specie specific qualities that differentiate humans from any other creature, but with that being said, humans are often compared and contrasted with animals and machines. Some of these specific qualities are the ability to interpret, free will, and the use of language, but what does it really mean to be human?

Sometimes a person may feel that they have no purpose in life. Finding out who you are just takes the time of sitting down and thinking of the importance in your life. Who am I? I am Mercedes Kimberly Kingston, and I am a person with different personalities, characteristics, and identities. The many ways, in which I identify myself, in fact, are the ways that define who I am. My Identity is something only I can fully define. I have a little brother, which makes me a sister; I have two loving parents, which makes me a daughter; I am in college studying medicine, which makes me a student; and I have wonderful friends in desperate need of support, which makes me a wonderful best friend.

The question “who am I”? Can have a lot of individuals thinking about themselves, including myself because one might not know where to start. It is a very broad question, but having done the Strengths Finder 2.0 assessment, I realized more in depth what kind of person I really am based on my top 5 strengths. Who I am as a learner, who I am in my career and who I am as a person of faith lead me to answering the question above and understanding more of myself within.

There’s a lot we can learn from the stories of our past – if we tell them in such way that enables us to hear what they really have to say. This holds true with me and my life. To put it simply, the life I’ve lived up to this point has been nothing short of a beautiful (and bumpy) roller coaster ride! As I have grown up there have been many factors that have influenced me to take on or do certain things. These things, plus some of my individual choices, have contributed into what’s made me who I am today. And with that, I’m happy to say for this moment in time, I’m satisfied with the person I am and the path I’m taking.