Sometimes I find myself asking the question "How do you know when you have become who you are"? The journey of life is basically a journey to return to your original essence and to become who you really are. We are born pure and innocent and then we acquire our personalities and other defense mechanisms that we use to shield and protect ourselves from life. The second half of our life journey, if we are on the path to enlightenment, is spent attempting to take off these masks and to remove the armor that we have acquired in order to rediscover our purity and innocence. The Buddhists call this "discovering the face we had before we were born". When I look in the mirror, and during moments of introspection, I wonder how far along I am on this journey of re-discovering who I am. What is my true essence? What is my original nature? It is nearly impossible to know this when you are young. In our youth it is far more important for us to fit in, to be like others, and find acceptance from others. We are also too busy building our lives to worry too much about who we are. This is considerably less important when you get older. I am still trying to get from behind the masks I wear and to break through the armor I have created to find the real me.
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