Who am I? Who are any of us?
Have you ever sat down and thought about identity? How you identify yourself or how others identify you.
Identity is more than a name and just think, to many people you have an identity without even having a name.
From the people you see every day on your way to work, the shop assistant who serves you, the barista who sells you coffee.
You are so-and-so’s daughter or son. Someone else’s husband, wife or partner.
Blonde, brunette, black, white, fat, thin, tall, short, drive a silver car. Dog owner, cat owner, driver, teacher, farmer, man, woman.
When you become a parent, you are also someone’s mother or father.
My daughter is nearly three so in those three years, we have met a lot of people-other parents, children, doctors, health visitors etc.
It is funny to think (even after three years) that I am someone’s mum.
I am referred to as Elizabeth’s mum many times. When I ring up to make doctors appointments, I say I’m Elizabeth’s mum but isn’t it funny that I have known some of these people for three years yet am still Elizabeth’s mum and not Emma?
I am guilty of it too. I know people as so-and-so’s mum or dad and, having attended groups since my daughter was tiny, I feel I’ve left it too long to admit that actually, I have no idea what your name is.
In the non-parenting world, you wouldn’t dream of being so familiar with people whose name you don’t know. Some of these groups involve personal sharing of the most personal kind-breastfeeding, sleep, even sex for some people. Yet we still don’t know each other’s names.
So getting married and having children-even owning a dog, adds to an already long list of names to each of our identities.
Who are any of us?
