What defines us

The other day I was thinking about the things that define us. Many of these things we choose, like clothes we wear, our hairstyles, our hobbies.

 Then there are things that define us without even having to be declared. Being overweight, for example. Unfortunately, someone's excess weight often defines them to others, whether it's with disgust, pity, or disdain. I consistently get treated better than I ever did at my highest weight.

My weight loss (and for those who've known me for a long time, my weight gain) is a huge defining factor for me. Probably bigger than I'd like it to be. I'm so entrenched in it right now that it comes up constantly in conversations. Part of it is that I'm still self-conscious of the weight I need to lose, and I like to make it clear that I'm still working hard. And there's also the fact that it's a huge (cheese alert) journey that I'm on, and if I lose touch with that and let it fade to the background, I'll never reach my destination.

On a related note, my veganism is also a large part of who I am, as it heavily affects my day to day life. I find myself often putting these two facts together...like I'm qualifying being an overweight vegan with the fact that I've lost 80 lbs already (side note for anyone interested: Colleen Patrick Goudreau talked about this in a podcast a while ago).

I'm looking forward to that point in time where I find myself content with where I'm at weight-wise (whatever that number may be)...maybe then I can let the things that truly matter define me: my family, compassion, kindness, success, the things that make me unique.

If I let myself reach contentedness at this point in my weight loss, does that mean I give up?

Can you be happy with who you are while simultaneously working on improving yourself?


Here's a final deep thought for you to mull over...