The History of the Self

To create a personal myth is to fashion a history of the self. A history is an account of the past that seeks to explain how and why events transpired as they actually did. History is much more than a chronological listing of names, dates, and places. It is a story of about how the past came to be and how, ultimately, it gave birth to the present. It is a truism that the historians understanding of the present colors the story he or she will tell about the past. When the present changes, the good historian may rewrite the past— not to distort or conceal the truth, but to find one that better reflects the past in light of what is known in the present and what can be reasonably anticipated about the future. 

Dan McAdams, The Stories We Live By