You are what you choose to be.

I was at a BBQ the other day and ended up in a conversation with a gentlemen that got me thinking. I really don't put myself in enough situations where I have truly intellectual conversations.

Self discovery is different for everyone. I've always found that for me, it's not in reading or studies that I find out more about myself, it's in discussion.

In the conversation I made a statement. I said "People decide for themselves how they feel in the moment. You are what you choose to be."
People have the choice of how to react in all situations.

For example, I went to go to hang out with a new group of my boyfriends' friends. The first time I went there, I was so uncomfortable I asked my boyfriend if we could leave early. My boyfriend acknowledged the fact that they were a bit "different" but asked me to perhaps give them one more try and to go in with an open mind because they really liked me and kept asking when I was coming back! So the next time I went I thought to myself: These people are all people. So I just decided that I was going to have a good time. Do you know what? I did. Not only that, but I ended up having great conversation with a couple of the people there.

It was all in the decision. I found out that if I just treated those people like we were already friends then I was able to accept them for who they were. They are a little rough around the edges... but aren't all our edges a little rough?