Post 2: What's in a name? (10/2/16)

1) For the majority of my life, I was known as a name other than “Matt”; that name was “Matthew”. When I went to high school, however, I decided to start to go by the name Matt. This shows an interesting divide in my life, as people I have known since before high school still call me Matthew, and people that I met in high school call me Matt. I do not correct people when they call me Matthew, and many times, when I'm not thinking, I'll introduce myself as Matthew to people instead of Matt. This goes to show that my name has very little meaning to me, other than as a means of identification. The name Matthew has roots back to the Bible, with obvious religious ties there. I am not a particularly religious person, though, so this connection does not have much meaning to me. While I like the names Matthew or Matt, neither of them have any deep meaning to me. My parents told me that the reason for providing me with that name was simply because they liked the sound of it, not because it had any significance to them, either. For these reasons, my name does not play a large part in my identity, and does not identify me in any way, other than providing a way for me to be recognized.
2) There is a simple, ongoing example of being “two” that I experience every day. There are two attitudes that one can adopt; the person that you are when you are around your family, and the person that you are when you are around your friends. When I am around my friends, I act differently than I would if I were to be with my family. The language that I use, for example, would most certainly not be the same that I would use with my family. When I am in the car with my friends, we might listen to rap music, and if I were with my family we would listen to country. Also, the the activities that I do are much different. While I might spend a Friday night with my friends at a Millbrook football game and then Cook Out, if I were to instead spend that Friday with my family I would eat a nice dinner and then watch television with them. When I am with my friends in this scenario, I am more like the “individual” and with I'm with my family I am I part of “a larger whole”. The dilemma that exists in being the “individual” and part of “a larger whole” is trying to strike a balance between the two personalities you adopt in each so that you are not a completely different person when switching between them. This means that you must be the person that you want to be all the time, instead of conforming to what you believe each party wants.