There are twenty-six letters available to us in the English language. There are five vowels and twenty-one consonants. There are endless possibilities.

Of these twenty-six letters—each with the ability to make several sounds—we can string together words that are meaningful. We can create words that can build a nation, or words that can start a war. We can argue, we can express our love, and we can convey our gratitude. We can build each other up, or we can tear each other down.

The words we choose to create of the twenty-six letters given to us can define those around us.

As we traverse through life, we tend to believe that we know ourselves pretty well. We have a set group of adjectives used to describe us (intelligent, funny, athletic, etc.). However, we tend to forget that we ourselves did not choose these adjectives. The words we hold so closely to our inner selves have been arbitrarily assigned to us by our parents, friends, teachers, and peers.

Almost every child begins school on the same level, academically speaking. They have not yet been sorted in accordance to what the school deems is their level of intelligence. As they grow older, however, a blatant difference becomes evident. The children who are placed into higher-level classes are labeled as “smart.” This label can be used admiringly or derisively. That is to say, the “smart” children are either looked up to because they are intelligent, or looked down upon because they are “nerds.”

Students who are placed into lower-level classes tend to believe that they are in fact lower than the students in the higher-level classes, although this is not the case. Academic success becomes one with intelligence and soon it is difficult for the children to tell the difference between the two. Those in lower-level classes are often labeled as “stupid,” and can often not shake this label.

We allow others to exploit the power of words and define us from an early age.

When I was in high school, people began to describe me as “sassy” due to my sarcastic nature. This was not a label I wanted, because I have always viewed the word sassy to be negative. However, no matter how much I protested that I was not sassy, the label persisted, and I eventually had to give in. Being “sassy” became part of who I am, for better or for worse, and it was due to the consistent use of the word to describe me.

This system of defining ourselves by the words others use to describe us is one that should cease to exist. We should stop depending on others in order to find ourselves, and instead look within ourselves and decide on our own who we are, and who we want to be.

Nobody has known you, nobody knows you, and nobody will know you as well as you know yourself. Use those twenty-six letters you are given to create words of your own to say who you are.