Kate @ 8

The other day my oldest daughter shared with me some information she’s uncovering in her psychology class about the formation of personality—the theories that science has about how/when/why we develop our specific personality traits. I’ve always loved this subject and I especially love seeing it again through the lens of my child—to have the time to talk anecdotally as her mother about how early I saw her basic personality and all the ways it has delighted me over the years.
My husband jokes that you can place me in a situation with a total stranger and within ten minutes the stranger will be telling me his/her life story. And my reply to this teasing remark is that basically I find people very fascinating. Everyone has a story to tell and I love hearing how each person got from point A to point B, H, N and even Z! I love hearing about their likes and dislikes (especially with regards to their work), the paths they’ve taken in their lives, resiliency in the face of tragedies…It’s like they’re painting their self portrait right before your eyes and with each word you see another brush stroke and color until finally they’ve fleshed out so much of themselves that you begin to see the larger picture of them, yourself and the world. It’s not always PRETTY but most often it’s REAL and for me that is what is most important—honesty with a touch of humor and humbleness—you can’t beat that combination.

And so I love these conversations with my children because even though we’ve been with each other all these years there is still so much to discover. Years ago I urged my daughters to try to write down their thoughts in a journal—this was when they first started to write sentances. They looked at me quizzically and I told them that one day they would treasure reading the words they wrote when their minds were younger and discovering so many things—that later they would see parts of their personalities that were there and that were being formed. Flash forward a few years and  they’ve gone back to read those sweet young words in their journals and they get such a kick out of their younger selves.

I ran across this photo of me from my eighth birthday—a visual document of my younger self. I too, laugh with glee at that little red-headed barefooted ragamuffin I see in this photo. My face is full of freckles from being outside from dawn to dusk and I’ve got the hairstyle that I prefer even to this day—simple and pulled off my face so I can forget it and get on with the things I want to do. Simple with low maintenance but always admiring those who want to put in more effort in the adornment area.

So what’s your story and what do you think about personality development?