Who I'm NOT

I recently had a close encounter of the bizarre kind.  What should have been a rational, logical, reasonable conversation between two adults turned into quite the little nasty little brouhaha.  Don't ask me details...well, not here, anyway.  In the middle of all this, the other party...now and forever to be referred to as She Who Must Not Be Named....asked the following question:  "Who ARE you?"  In asking this, she communicated the idea that because my family and I are unknown to her and her family, she had the right to belittle, disrespect, badger, berate, bully, harass and intimidate me.  She exercised this self proclaimed right with great diligence and vigor.  I was so dumbfounded by her behavior that I couldn't really come up with an answer to her question.  Given some time, distance and a couple of panic attacks (NOT kidding, y'all...not kidding), I think the better way of answering the question is to tell her (she'll never read this, but it makes me feel better to write it) who I'm not.

• I'm NOT going through life punishing people for the hardships and struggles of my past.
• I'm NOT living my day to day with a mindset that I am owed anything because of those hardships.
• I'm NOT the kind of person who finds it necessary to bully and berate others to make myself feel better.
• I'm NOT the kind of person who has an over-inflated sense of self.
• I'm NOT the kind of person who is in any way, shape or form deluded about my own faults and failings.  Trust me, I can point them out faster than you can.
• I'm NOT the kind of person who makes a habit of using other people as my emotional trash cans.
• I'm NOT a victim.
• I'm NOT looking for an easy payday or every "free lunch" that comes down the pike.
• I'm NOT hateful.
• I'm NOT misled about how important I am...my life is just as valuable as the next girl's.
• I'm NOT confused about how to treat the people who cross my path. 
• I'm NOT perfect...and I try very hard to remember that!
• I'm NOT looking for a way to dodge my responsibilities.  (Folding the laundry doesn't count.)
• I'm NOT consumed by misery and bitterness.
• I'm NOT going to give away my joy.

So there.  Oh, one more.

• I'm NOT the woman I was even a year ago...praise God Almighty for the work He's done in my life.  Because that woman...the one I used to be...yeah, She Who Must Not Be Named would have truly understood exactly who I was.