Are you You?

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So you aced a test. Well done! But let’s take a step back. Was it really you who aced it, or was it everything that has ever shaped you into becoming who you are today, from parents, teachers, friends, to even the rock you kick while on the way to school.

This is the modern spin on the Ship of Theseus question. If every part of a newborn is slowly swapped out and shaped by their environment over time, do they still count as themselves? Or are they more like a google doc of a person, constantly edited by everything around them?

Everybody loves giving credit to a specific person. Self-made success stories, personal growth arcs, character over circumstance. But that’s only half the truth. The environment is more than just noise. It is responsible for, well, you. The way your brain has wired itself and continues to do so has been shaped by
your parents’ tone of voice, the way your school runs, everything. You don’t exist in a vacuum. You can’t exist in a vacuum.

Everybody loves blaming a specific person as well. As humanity, what do we love more than pointing fingers? Can you really blame a person who turned out to be a thief when their whole family is known for burglary?

However, it’s not fair to say you’re just a product of your surroundings either. Identical twins can be as different as anyone, even when raised in the same household, going to the same school. Choice still exists. You are a canvas and one of a thousand painters. You are the sum of a billion external brushstrokes, a majority of them yours.

So when you succeed, yes, part of it is you grinding and pushing. But a good part of you is the sum of your best friend who encouraged you, the YouTube video you saw, or the ID card that stopped working. 

It’s not about blaming the environment or glorifying the individual. It’s about understanding that every win, every loss, every moment you experience is built on a scaffolding of experience, people, time, and chance.

So is it the world that built you, or is it the moments where you rose above just your environment, above what your surroundings wanted you to be, and became the actual, real you?

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