Identity Crisis Neighborhood
By: Boonsiri Pornjalernchaisilp
A word of advice adults often give the youth is “Just be yourself.” Although wise in
theory, many teenagers in today’s world, myself included, are struggling through the self-identity
crisis. This crisis is inflicted upon people who are uncertain about their identity, often the youth,
as they are neither a child nor an adult. The tough changes I faced physically and emotionally
throughout adulting left me pondering my self identity. As a child, my ambitions were clear.
However, those aspirations proved to be unrealistic as I grew up. Losing hope, I let my dreams
slip through my fingers. As I hit puberty, my body faced tremendous changes, which I found
difficult to adapt to. Being stripped away from my previous identity, I felt foreign to myself and
my peers. Realizing my identity crisis, I embarked on a journey, delving inside myself to search
for my identity.
I visualized myself in a gated community which will guide me to uncover my identity. I
was in a dull house, identical to every other house around. It was like a blank slate, beckoning
to be decorated with personality and individuality. This journey just started, but the house taught
me that I should embrace my personality as it allows me to be my own special individual.
Gaining wisdom from the house, I proceeded to the road labeled “Experience Street”. Due to the
thick fog ahead, I couldn’t see what was in front of me, however, everything behind me was
crystal clear. As I walked along “Experience Street,” I realized that the road was my life journey.
Where I was standing marked the present; to the back were my past memories, and to the front
was future uncertainty. As I stepped away from the enlightening road, I found myself in a pool.
Diving in, the pool presented me with the history of my ethnicity, my family tree, and a portrait of
myself. Understanding my heritage and upbringing was a key factor in figuring out my identity as
it is what makes me physically unique and biologically most similar to a certain demographic.
After my swim, I headed out to open the Eye Gate hoping for a new-found understanding of my
identity. Once back to reality, I realized I had learned much from my self-exploration, however,
completely figuring out my identity was not one of them.
Confused, I reflected on my journey down the road, finally comprehending what it had
taught me. Every step that I took during my walk, I gained experience which affected who I was.
Our identity is far greater than any physical features or mental thoughts. In fact, it is a complex
blend of all that and our experiences. It is a never-ending cycle of development as we age. The
idea of “identity” does not persist over time; instead, it constantly shifts from one second to the
next as a result of the changes a person undergoes in a lifetime.
