What Do You Do? (or Moment to Moment, Day by Day)

How do you define yourself? By your nationality, what you perceive your so-called "race" to be, gender, sexual preference, political alignment, philosophical creed, religious (or nonreligious) beliefs, biographical/childhood narrative, friends, or family? Do you say I like this music, that movie or TV show, or a particular author, a type of food or drink in order to reveal your nature to others? Or maybe you're one of those who plasters bumper stickers all over your car to broadcast your identity to the world.

I'd like to offer my own view of what constitutes one's identity. Any or all of the above-mentioned items can contribute to describing one's life, to be sure, and I engage in some of them on this blog (especially with my "favorites" lists). But there is something I believe is far more profound and telling about oneself: what you DO with your life. Specifically, how do you spend your day? Or more immediately, what do you do from moment to moment?

And isn't that really what people think defines one, anyway? Just think of all those popular behind-the-scenes biographies of celebrities: for example, I have enjoyed reading such accounts of the classic rock groups The Beatles and The Doors. Sure, their artistic accomplishments, staged public appearances, and news headlines defined them to an extent, but actually discovering how they spent most of the time in their daily lives was enlightening, to say the least.

We already tend to see those with whom we are more intimate, like family and close friends, by how they spend their time. Yes, we'll cheer with them when they reach their peaks and console them through their personal valleys. But we'll also be more likely to frame our view of who they really are as we observe them doing what all of us have to do: tackle a day, from moment to moment, from beginning to end... and then start afresh the next day!