Authentic

"We think we understand the rules when we become adults but what we really experience is a narrowing of the imagination." - David Lynch

Each of us believes we are capable of defining what is “authentic,” and each of us feels that, at least at times, we are authentic. It seems simple - to be oneself, to remain true to oneself. But perhaps what we consider sincere and authentic is merely an illusion? Perhaps our “authenticity” is a finely woven collage of borrowed ideas, values, and cultural clichés? And is it not paradoxical that when we invoke our own identity, we reach for ready-made images - and sometimes even for our own imagination, as if it, too, were not shaped from narratives borrowed from others?