The Emergent Self

Questioning what we're told it means to be human

Topic

Becoming

How a self takes shape over a lifetime through experience, interpretation, and response, and why it is never too late to begin again.

Young man driving through a small town at dusk on graduation night, cap, gown and diploma on the seat beside him

“You’ll Be a Factory Line Worker”: Overcoming Humiliation and Becoming Who You Are

My high school guidance counselor told me I’d be a factory line worker for the rest of my life. Here’s what that moment taught me about humiliation, and about choosing my own story.
Older woman standing in an open doorway, looking out from a cozy room onto sunlit countryside — starting over later in life

Starting Over Later in Life: Why We Never Stop Becoming

We tend to think becoming happens early, and that after middle age we just maintain what we have. My retired friends prove otherwise.