Little countries do not have this luxury of defending themselves. We have to do it before the fact, not after the fact

[E]ach of our voices has something unique to say. Not only should I not mold my life to the demands of external conformity I can't even find the model by which to live outside myself. I can only find it within.

There is a certain way of being human that is my way. I am called upon to live my life in this way, and not in imitation of anyone else's life. But this notion gives a new importance to being true to myself. If I am not, I miss the point of my life I miss what being human is for me.

We define our identity always in dialogue with, sometimes in struggle against, the things our significant others want to see in us. Even after we outgrow some of these others—our parents, for instance—and they disappear from our lives, the conversation with them continues within us as long as we live.