No, no. Not that kind of label. I’m talking about the labels we give people.

I’m not sure where I stand on labels of people. I spent years as a parent who didn’t like having her children labeled for any reason. I felt – hell, I still feel – labeling a child does not allow that child to develop to his or her full potential. People have a pre-conceived notion of what a particular label means and therefore, think certain things about those with that label. Consequently, a child may never become his or her true self. Stifling, isn’t it?

Then, there are the labels I have lived with as an adult. Single mom. Marathoner. Runner. Athlete. Photographer. Artist, and more. Many of these have been simple statements of who I am – such as single mom. I couldn’t deny that. I would never want to deny it. I lived with that label easily but did not like the questions it sometimes brought.

Marathoner is another given. I finished seven marathons so far and so I am a marathoner. I do not qualify that with times or anything else. It just is.

Runner, on the other hand, I have always had a hard time with, along with athlete and artist. Yet, as I am packing up my home to move, I realize I must be an artist from what I am packing – paints, papers, inks.

What about you? Is there a label that you have been given that you fight?