Who Do I Want to Be? Building My Current Stand

1. Rev. Peter Marshall once said, “Unless we stand for something, we shall fall for anything.” That idea challenges me to think about what values I truly want to carry. It’s easy to float along, going with whatever others say is right or normal, but real strength is deciding for yourself what matters—and holding on to it, even when it’s hard.

2. I believe an internal compass is what keeps us grounded in a world full of pressure and distraction. Rev. Peter Marshall’s reminder that “unless we stand for something, we shall fall for anything” shows why it matters—we need values that guide us when it’s easier to just go along. The courage of Tank Man, the injustice exposed in Macon’s “Thug Day,” and the moral choice in Ursula Le Guin’s Omelas all reveal that silence or comfort can cost integrity. For me, my compass points toward fairness, respect, and authenticity. E.E. Cummings said the hardest challenge is to be yourself, and I believe trusting your compass—your own sense of right and wrong—is how you stay true even when the world tries to pull you off course.

3. The image of Tank Man in Tiananmen Square is powerful to me. One person, alone, standing in front of tanks, showed that sometimes resistance doesn’t look like winning—it looks like refusing to move. That reminds me that courage is often quiet, but it can still shake the world.

4. I think about Macon’s “Thug Day” and the teachers who spoke out against it. Speaking against stereotypes and harmful traditions isn’t always popular, but silence would mean agreeing. This reminds me that part of my stand has to be using my voice, even if it makes people uncomfortable.

5. Ursula Le Guin’s story The Ones Who Walk Away from Omelas pushes me, too. It asks whether I would accept happiness if it was built on someone else’s suffering. I want to be someone who doesn’t just accept comfort at the expense of others—but someone willing to walk away and choose differently.

6. Mary Wilder’s words about “well-behaved women” remind me that change doesn’t come from fitting in. And E.E. Cummings’ line, “The hardest challenge is to be yourself in a world where everyone is trying to make you be somebody else,” sums up what I struggle with every day. Who I want to be is someone strong enough to be authentic, even if it sets me apart.

7. So my current stand is this: I want to live with integrity, use my voice against injustice, and stay true to myself even when it’s uncomfortable. I’d rather be remembered for standing up for something—even in small ways—than for blending in and standing for nothing at all.