Moments ago, I received knowledge of myself from what I thought to be an unlikely source. A friend lent me some tarot cards based on Amerindian teachings, for me to find symbolism to put on some smoking bottles I am painting. I started playing with the cards and got a serious shock. The totem animal I drew for the "within" slot in a particular lay, whale, defined so much of who I am and what it is I am here to do that it brought tears to my eyes. Every so often in this life, when the path gets difficult, or hazy, I have received reaffirmation of what I am inside.
This one was almost a yell, and at a point in this life when I have been prone toward self-pity and anxiety about my personal future. It is not about the self, but rather the Self, and the relating of one to another. All things are connected. To forget this is to risk losing one's self. To remember is to be at peace again.
The sign posts in life are everywhere. One has merely to pay closer attention, so they don't slip past.