Identity

A lot of different things shape identity. Here are some of the major factors that have shaped my identity:

Personal Experiences: The experiences in my past shape who I am today. I think one of the most influential parts of my past has been my family doing foster care. Seeing the pain in so many innocent children’s lives and seeing a tangible way to show them love gives me direction as to what I want to do in my future. It has given me a passion for justice and caring for the oppressed and underprivileged.

Family: My family has also greatly influenced who I am and what I believe. I share a lot of values and beliefs with them. I admire my parents and seek to be like them in many ways. I value the advice of my family and look to them in my times of greatest need.

Faith: As a Christian, my faith plays a large part in shaping my identity. Although most of my relatives are not Christian, it is something I hold to with all of my heart. In everything I do I want to be serving God and loving others. I know that I often fall short, but I have a purpose and something to live for.

Reading Response 6

Tony Morrison´s Nobel Lecture demonstrated a profound argument on the power of language. The recent hate crimes at UC Davis an UC San Diego reveal her point of language’s destructive capability. She states “oppressive language does more than represent violence; it is violence; does more than represent the limits of knowledge; it limits knowledge.” She voices an opinion entirely different than the commonly known rhyme “sticks and stones can break my bones but words can never hurt me.” In reality, words often have an incredible capability to inflict pain. As Morrison explains, words themselves can be a form of violence, not only a symbol of violent ideas. The spray painted words at UC Davis and the spoken words at UC San Diego caused incredible pain although no physical violence occurred. The words in themselves were acts of ignorance and violence.

Words are powerful because they can be used as a weapon of evil or a source of good. I often fail, but my goal is to filter my language according to Ephesians 2:29 of the Bible. It says, “Do not let any unwholesome talk come out of your mouth, only what is helpful for building others up, according to their needs, that it may benefit those who listen.” What a change that would be if the words we used would benefit others rather than tear them down. That is definitely something we should strive for.