There are two facets of human identity: who we are and who we believe we ought to be. Both are similarly formed through our nurturing environments growing up and our genetics. How we believe who we ought to be is a philosophical and theological question. Do we actually have the free will to define who we want to be; is free will just an illusion and our intuition of what ought to be is just entirely defined and founded upon our nature and nurture, including religion, parenting, and social environments; or God is the Creator and Definer, giving us the free will to choose Him while defining the objective right morality and character? I believe no one knows the answer to this except God, or the answer to this question really doesn’t matter.

But what I find most fascinating and amazing is the former form of human identity: who we are. It seems so simple, but is such an empowering and amazing gift that God has giving us. As we mature, we have the plasticity and ability to change our natural innate identities, largely defined by our nature and nurture, to what we believe we ought to be. Sure, it takes effort, as all change does, to self-reflect, keep an open mind and listen, and change, but we are not ultimately constrained by our innate nature. We can be anyone who we think we ought to be! Actually, unless we are God, we must be humble enough to realize that we will never be perfect, never enough to be who we truly believe we ought to be, but being able to work towards that goal is quite amazing in itself to me.

Edwin Ma, 3/20/26