This month I’m taking part in the Blogging from A-Z Challenge and will be posting every day except Sundays. My readers voted for the theme “Life, the Universe, and Everything According to My Five-Year-Old”. During bedtime discussions and colouring sessions, my daughter will finally be providing the answers to the philosophical problems and unsolved mysteries that have puzzled humanity’s greatest thinkers for centuries.
What makes us who we are?
Me: Leona, who do you think you are?
Leona: Myself, of course!
Me: Can you describe yourself?
L: Bad and good.
Me: What’s bad about you?
L: When I was little I didn’t share.
Me: But now you do. What else can you tell me about yourself?
L: I love to stay up late! I like to stay in your bed and watch Paw Patrol. I like to cuddle in the bed or the sofa downstairs or upstairs and watch cartoons. I love to draw and I also love to snuggle with my family. [Hugs me tight]
Me: What do you think your personality is like?
L: Hmm…
Me: Are you a shy person?
L: Sometimes I am shy. If I see someone new who I don’t remember. But I always chat on Teams meetings. I go “blah, blah, blah, blah, blah”. I go crazy. I go [incoherent babbling and flailing of arms].
Me: Anything else?
L: I’m cheeky because I sneak for candy.
Me: Are you the same as Mummy and Daddy or are you different?
L: Different.
Me: How are you different?
L: ‘Cause I don’t have the same hair as you. You don’t like peanut butter or peanuts but me and Daddy do. Me and Daddy are not normally serious and you’re serious. I have funny words. They all go sometimes wobbly. I like sweeties but Dad doesn’t.
Me: Is there anyone else in the world exactly the same as you?
L: I don’t think they have blonde hair or the same pyjamas.
Me: What if there was another little girl called Leona who had the same hair and even the same pyjamas? Would that be you?
L: No? I’m just me.
Me: What do you think makes you special?
L: I don’t think I have any specialness. I’m just different.
Me: Where do you think your personality comes from?
L: I don’t know. God?
Me: What do you think?
L: Hmm…I don’t know. This is a bit of a tricky question for me, Mum.
Me: That’s okay. These questions are difficult for me too.
Where do you think our identity comes from? Are you the same person you were 5, 10 or 20 years ago? Let me know in the comments!
This is fantastic. I remember having similar conversations with my youngest when he was little.
—
Tim Brannan, The Other Side: 2021: The A to Z of Monsters
I mean, I find pyjamas are the essential component of identity 😉
It is interesting how she defines people by their likes and dislikes. It is an easy difference to spot that is not visible.