Be You(Jose Rubio) You have awoken, but you see nothing; matter of fact, you can’t feel anything. The only thing you have to comfort you are your thoughts, but even those are compromised if not for the fact that I am the narrator of them. Who am I? I am– something, I suppose; some call me god, but you don’t have to worry with the formalities. And you, you: who are you? You must be asking yourself that very question, right? I mean, I already know, I am your consciousness, so let me spell it out for you: you are, essentially– nothing. Now, no need to get stressed out, there is literally nothing to worry about in your current state. Although, I suppose having your creator in your head must put some type of weight on your shoulders. Ha! Who am I kidding– you don’t know a thing. You have yet to be born– you are a husk: could it be that is the source of your stress?
What could you be, what should you be, and what I have dictated for you are very fair questions to pose, though redundant at the moment. You’re scared, aren’t you? Scared of the infinite possibilities of what you are to gain: life. You are scared of taking a wrong turn, face first with adversity, failing to not make a mockery of that which I have given you. You are scared of ignoring the opportunities laid in your path– or simply not comprehending that they are there in the first place. But most importantly, you are scared of letting me down; scared of not living life to your best abilities. Don’t worry– I'll show you the possibilities.

You could be born a man, heir of a family fortune; everything at the grasp of your hands. But, you don’t want to lead the family business– you seek more than to greedily depend on what was given to you at birth. Yet, you never say it, never show it, you never even think of it. Your whole life, you make the choices that you believe would be to your benefit: the choices that would make your family proud. In the end, yes, you die rich– but you never did feel fulfillment, did you?
Or, alternatively, you are born a woman in a less than adequate situation. In school, you hear about all the different careers you could take, all the different things that the world has in store for you; you idolize these futures, but your home does not reflect what they are teaching you. You live by scraps, and your parents berate each other over finances every day: you cannot afford to live better. School showed you the world– but home showed you no escape, so– you didn’t even try; if they can’t escape poverty, why should you even try?

Life is horrifying, one can’t help thinking that, but what remains concrete is that within that uncertainty, there is still humanity. I am not to mandate what you are to become, and neither must you let your environment choose who you are; to let it take control is still a choice, but it is often a worthwhile venture to choose for yourself. It might be harder, perilous even, but to struggle and come out on top is a core facet of self. That being said, if you are to remember something please remember this phrase: love yourself, that is enough.
So, with that being said, let me pose you a question: who are you going to be in life?

It is scary to be someone, do something, feel something; for such reasons, my first words– are those of conviction.
“I’m going to be me.”

And so, you are born.

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