To start- I must say how thankful I am that Sam has a dynamic set of interests. I now have him hooked on my favorite modern television show, "Once Upon a Time"! Although I've made it halfway through season 1, we are re-watching previous episodes so he can understand what has happened. In doing so, we came across an awesome quote that I remember making my Facebook status upon first hearing it two years ago:

"People are gonna tell you who you are your whole life. You just gotta punch back and say, 'No, this is who I am'. You want people to look at you differently? Make them! You want to change things, you're gonna have to go out there and change them yourself, because there are no fairy godmothers in this world." ~Emma Swan from "Once Upon a Time: The Price of Gold" (#1.4)

There are so many quotes about being yourself, but this one resonated with me due to the sense of reality it encompasses. Elementary school makes it seem so simple to be who you are, but it's truly not. We've all experienced people telling us what to do because they either think it's who we are, or how they want us to be. 

People are also so quick to judge. Everywhere we go, there will be criticism. Even if we make a decision we know is best for us, there is still some sort of negative response. We can either be accepting and conform to other's opinions of our lives, or make them look at us differently.

We will never escape people putting us down or declaring our goals and dreams as unfit or unattainable. Therefore, we might as well ignore their negativity and prove them wrong. 

I'd have to say this advice is challenging to live by, but it's the best course to take in being who you are. A little while after Sam and I watched this episode, a friend I follow on Pinterest pinned this quote:

"I'm the one that has to die when it's time for me to die, so let me live my life the way I want to." ~Jimi Hendrix.

After all, if you have a problem with what I'm doing, maybe you're not paying enough attention to you.