Every human being has a choice over various aspects of their lives. Each person’s choices create their own singular identity. Humankind is all one race but–through choice and identity–we’re 7 billion individuals.
Your choices tell a lot about you. In fact, your choices determine your identity.
A baby is born, the first call of business is naming him or her. That exercise of choosing the name began months, maybe years before this highlight event. Books are in print to help you choose your baby’s name. Some traditions help choose a name: American Indians connect a natural phenomenon that takes place simultaneously with the birth: Walking Bear. In Biblical times names were given to identify a marked event–Adam-dust, Eve-life-giver–or a character trait–Noah-rest. By a parent’s choice, we come by our name, which is one of our primary identity markers.
(Audit of Humankind, chapter 1.6)
The unity of humankind and diversity of individuals is one of the biggest enigmas of all times. How do you explain it? And more importantly, why such diverse unity? Answering the big questions in life is the goal of The Explanation. We will get to that answer, but first, we have to lay all of the pieces of the puzzle on the table and turn them right side up.
The unity of humankind and diversity of individuals is one of the biggest enigmas of all times. How do you explain it? And more importantly, why such diverse unity? Click To TweetThere is an ongoing debate as to the meaning of race. Are we humans one race or is humanity composed of multiple races? This chapter of Audit of the Universe is designed to bear on such queries. Today’s sub-topic of choice, coupled with identity reveals yet another human singularity. Every human can make choices and has their very own character. In that, humankind is unique and in that, also lies each person’s individuality: diverse unity. We are one race with a multitude of identities.
I hear the protests about each person’s ability to choose. Yes, many have no choice over their destiny, their geographical, cultural, or educational options. They have no alternatives, a prerequisite for making choices. They have no say in their profession, their living conditions, their marital conditions, even their religious or political orientations. Slave-masters, overlords, tormentors exist, and they manipulate their underlings to their pervasive advantage. Even the manipulated minority or majority has reduced choices. Maybe one day they’ll have more meaningful opportunities. In the meantime, these people are limited to what they do with the small amount of liberty they embrace: They lie in apathy or learn to move forward.
Here, pêle-mêle are numerous choices, some small, some life-affecting, each one of us makes. This list has two reasons:
- Firstly, see that each option you choose identifies your individuality a little more.
- Secondly, see that each of us has choices, crossroads, options in our lives. Sometimes, like when we unexpectedly, or for any reason, lose our employment, we have to choose what we’re going to do next. A significant decision–and in your entourage you’re going to be recognized and identified both for how you manage this intermediary period and, what you choose as a new occupation.
Naming what we work with:
- Our children, house, boat, etc.
- Dolls, puppets, pets, etc.
- New methods: Just watched a video by Bill Mounce who named a Bible Study method: phrasing
- New concepts: I’ve coined specific short phrases to express some basic ideas:
- Theologious – I don’t care to use the term religious; it carries too much negative baggage. You can see here why I prefer to be associated with theology
- Diverse-unity – This blog post expresses this exact concept: Unity of Humankind, Diversity of Individuals
- Coherent completeness – A puzzle is composed of multiple pieces. It’s only when all these assembled pieces are in their proper place (coherent) that you can witness the entire picture it represents (completeness). More about coherent completeness here
Personal choices about the exterior image each wants to display:
- Hairdos – if you watch European soccer players it’s a show within the match
- Dress codes I read an article about dandy groups in the UK each with their identifiable uniform, tattoos, jewelry, make-up. Shoes, handbags, and clothing accessories are big business. Variety is plethoric to satisfy your particular choice.
- Our opinions, what each person likes on social media
Causes:
- Food and diets: Beyond taste, there’s also health.
- I was going to include a list of diets and vegetarian choices you can make. Far too many to include here. Click on the links to see the array of choices
- Recipes, cuisine by country, by a chef, particularly in France
- Foundations: Every color, cause, and idea under the sun: Network for Good, Operation Smile, Brigitte Bardot dedicated to animals, Make-a-wish Foundation to help a child with an incurable sickness make a dream come true. The Susan G. Komen Foundation for research, support, and education in the field of breast cancer. Better known ones are the Walton and Melinda and Bill Gates Foundations.
All I’m doing in this blog is showing you the multitudinous available choices. Choosing between options is a human singularity that we exercise daily. Humankind uses their minds to make choices and decisions.
Lists:
- Creating lists is one of the latest crazes. The 12 Top…, The 10 Best…, World’s six worst…, top 10 trivia lists, top 10 cars, top 10 water slides. Top 10 Deadliest Roller Coasters, top 10 Most Insane Pools, Top 10 Most Dangerous Internet Challenges, and the list could go on with the Top 10 zaniest Lists
- Classification of music, the choices are immense
Books and Language:
- Books (Amazon capitalizes on categories and classification within each one. A potential buyer’s choice is so huge, you don’t even know what to pick anymore.). Each of us tends towards a personal preference, certain topical content, and themes. Wikipedia lists over 400 genres to classify books:
- Poetry
- Fiction
- Non-fiction
- I was just reading a French article about La Fontaine’s fables and how he planted words like little pins. How his authorship was so precise with vocabulary and yet so free with ideas. That was his choice of words and style. Each of us has picked their own.
Professions and Specializations
- Many people are bucking the usual economic route. They’re choosing atypical professions far from finance and marketing
- Middle-agers are changing profession in the midst of–even at the height–of their careers. They’re making a decided choice to modify their lifestyle
- Kimbal Musk, the brother of Elon, was very successful in building internet businesses which have made him very rich. He dropped out of the technology world to promote the idea that everyone should eat well. He also created an association that establishes vegetable gardens in schools. A career and life-changing choice
- Then you have people like Jerome Coquelle, who is pursuing his commercial studies while becoming world champion of diabolo. The business school EM Strasbourg, where he attends, promotes the moto, Be Distinctive. Atypical competencies with a mix of hard and soft skills that add value to its students. Your choices open unconventional careers. You can follow your chosen passions and dreams. You can even create new pathways
Availability of Products and Styles
- As a result of the creativity and imagination, we’ve already discussed
Should you want to pursue this subject of the effect choices have on identity, then this activity will help you. Here are three ground-level questions each of us can ponder.
- What choices do we make about our own identities?
- How can our choices influence how others see us?
- How can our choices influence how we understand ourselves?
Our bodies, brains, and minds are endowed with plasticity. These differences alone make us individual. By our own choices of how each of us uses their body, brain, and mind, we decide the personal trajectory we’re going to follow.
Our bodies, brains, and minds are endowed with plasticity. These differences alone make us individual. By our own choices of how each of us uses their body, brain and mind we decide the personal trajectory we're going to follow. Click To TweetChoice is all about how each individual molds their space-time piece of clay. Humans alone have this choice, and our daily input is a perpetual changing work of art. Another human singularity.
This blog post is an excerpt from chapter 1.7 of the book Audit of Humankind.
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