I am a Buddhist. I like to think I was taught to be one as a child without realizing it. As an adult I found out a few family members considered themselves buddhists and even my catholic grandmother certainly acted like one.
Eventually somewhere in my twenties I accepted that I probably identified as a Buddhist.
Sometimes people ask me if I'm a therevada, mahayana or Vajrayana Buddhist and I tend to get a blank look on my face. I'm probably a deeply flawed zen Buddhist, although I think many american buddhists probably have trouble labeling themselves.
I sometimes hesitate to tell people I'm a Buddhist because I've encountered wildly different interpretations of what that means, and often there is an assumption that I like the idea of the psychology of compassion and the label or buddhism is convenient, although to be honest I think those people are also buddhists. It's a fluid word. But meditation, discipline, mindfulness and the eightfold path have been an important part of my life, and especially this year.
