Existentialism

Individuality

Individuality;

The first objective that blatantly appears in our minds is that of possessing Uniqueness....

This uniqueness has somehow been a sole contributing factor that has been passed down by generations as a pattern of existence, somehow the new "survival of the fittest".

This has always been the case for all of us, as said metaphorically,

We pick the most beautiful flower from the bunch,

We wait for a butterfly to emerge from its cacoon,

And we will always find unique gemstones in rivers... 

I remember when I had once been to a beach after what I can imagine as an immensely long time, and it felt so pure and serene just being in that moment and suddenly I felt something reach my arm that was pushed by the water as I sat there admiring the scenery, and as I reached out for it, it was a stone, yet, it wasn't an ordinary stone, it was a unique stone with different colors embedded inside of it. The yellow and red seemed as though I had never seen those colors ever in my 20 odd years of my existence.

Something then occurred to me, individuality, we are all carved and shaped differently, because we all have a unique and different purpose.

As I held onto that stone admiring it and showing it to my sister, my heart, even though convincing me to keep it with me as remembrance, I decided to let the same water that bought it to me, take it back.

I know it may sound cynical, or maybe just kind-hearted, but I had a valid reason.

You see, like the stone, not everyone is meant to stay, whether it may be your friends, your family, your loved ones or even your not-so-loved ones. Everyone has to either say or either leave.

With this decision, there is a greater change that takes place within us, again taking you back to the survival of the fittest, this change alters us, and even though it may sound obvious, it does effect our individuality.

Individuality isn't just about being yourself, it's like asking a butterfly, or rather convincing it to believe it is beautiful.

But the harsh truth is, we may never be able to fully train a butterfly to identify itself in a mirror, or even it we do succeed, it may never be fully satisfied.

And that is exactly what our individuality has come to, it is either "BE YOURSELF" or "FAKE IT TILL YOU MAKE IT" and these ideals are just a representation of how we dont understand or pay attention to things that alter our existence.

Like said by many philosophers, change can occur even after a second, then why to we tie up our expectations around our neck and tighten up its noose, just because of this fixed understanding of things that are supposedly "taught" to us.

What we need to take from our existence is what we experience, should be reflected upon, absorbed and planted in a manner where we can grow fruitfully, and maybe through that portray our existence of individuality to be a product of our differing experiences and embrace its beauty.

We may never know the beginning and end of existence, just like the butterfly, we may just flap our wings through storm and hail and emerge beautiful glimmering in the sunlight, but never accept or recognize, that it is these moments and define us.