I am not, but who am I?

I'll be honest, I was really nervous going to the meeting in the library, and what really pushed me past that was the promise of extra credit. Honestly, how could I pass that up?
I wasn't really sure what to expect, so I was surprised when we were actually directly involved in the discussion. We made a list of "I am"s and "I am not"s, pointing out traits about ourselves and the stereotypes that can easily follow. Most of the things I chose were surface level, and I couldn't bring myself to share, but some of the things people said were really interesting. That they were a tomboy, but didn't have lots of guy friends, or they were outdoorsy but not a redneck. Thinking about these things brought up the question of why we feel the need to justify ourselves so much, to act in opposition of those stereotypes just to show that we don't fall under them, if our own behavior or what we share is so heavily influenced by these that it causes us to close off a part of ourselves. It was a perspective that I had never thought of until we participated in that activity, and though I doubt I'll have the courage to act on it anytime soon, gaining a new way of seeing things is always something worthwhile.