I used to think about myself in terms of labels. When I was born in Fort Leavenworth, I was an Army Brat. Later, I was a truck driver’s son; a KC native; a Midwesterner; a Christian; a white Anglo/Irish boy with a tinge of Native American blood; a diver; a soccer player; and a camper. After college graduation, I was a geologist. With more schooling, I was an Environmental Scientist or a hydrogeologist, depending upon how the mood struck me.

At 25, I became a husband and not long after a father. Only a few short years later, I became a homeowner, a stock investor, a real estate investor, a small business owner, a boss, a business partner, a speaker, and an educator.

What I’ve come to understand is labels are meaningless. They help us compartmentalize, but they also detract from our similarities.

Therefore…

I am me.

I am sometimes strong…and oftentimes weak.

I am confident, but all too often insecure.

I am witty and sardonic in conversation. No. Usually I’m quiet and just like to listen.

I must be intelligent with my two degrees…well, not really.  I’ve met construction superintendents and welders who make me look like a white mouse in their experiment.

Nevertheless, I am okay being me.

That’s what I’ve learned About Me.

I’m not really any different than you.

I have experienced happiness, but wouldn’t have understood it without an equal amount of suffering and pain.

My About Me is about you. I am me. You are you and you are me.

We are we and we are one.

Interconnected.

Related.

We are one superorganism on a fragile planet, which is a speck of dust in space and time.

The sooner we all say “I am me and we are we,” the happier we will all be.