What will define you?

What defines a person? How do you define a person? How would you define yourself? Are we defined by our jobs? Then I am but a lowly cook. Are we defined by our possessions; our house, our cars, the clothing we wear? That would be a shame, because I would only be a condo, or a Saturn, or workout clothes. Could it be the degree we have, or our level of education? A mere associate's degree for me. How about our religious affiliation, our political party, our age, our marital status, the pets we own? I would be an outcast, partyless, 28 year old, husband, with a few cats. Man, if this is how society defines a person, I feel as though I may be missing something..... I prefer to think that we are defined by our actions, the passion that burns inside of us to achieve something, the driving forces that make us different from each other, and the deeper meaning of what gets us out of bed in the morning. So often we look to celebrity, to TV, to movies to get our inspiration and find our role models. Is that really what we should be? Is that really what we want to be? I guess I'm lucky then, because I have found so many people in my everyday life that inspire me. How about a woman who stands up to her family and her religion to find true happiness and to marry the man she loves? How about a guy who still lives in his home town, has a wife, 2 baby girls, and is a self-made successful business owner who is passionate about the work he does every day? How about a girl, fresh out of college, that moves to New York City by herself, and is now working during the day to support her Improv life at night, and making it on her own? How about a guy that gives up his job, to move away so that his wife can get the job of her dreams, while he tries for months to find a new job of his own in an economy that isn't hiring? Maybe a guy that goes hiking in the Grand Canyon for the first time, and gets absolutely devestated by the terrain, and then two years later goes BACK to do a three day backpack, just to prove that he can do it. If that's not enough, how about a guy that tries for years to get hired by the fire department, applying year after year after year, until he finally makes it and realizes his dream? That's inspiring to me. These are people in my everyday life that do these amazing things. That is truly the definition of the human spirit to me. So, I find myself wondering: What can I do to inspire others? What are my actions going to say about me? When it's all over, how will I be defined as a person?