What gives a person value?

I haven't written in a while.  Oops.  No excuses here.  I've been up and down in mood--and very much struggling to find contentment with myself.  It seems that the foundation of that lies, at least in part, with finding out what gives a person value.  I thought I would jot some notes to myself, and then realized, why not make it into a blog post :).

So, I'm here to pose a question to myself, and in the process, ask all of you the same:

What is it that gives a person value?

My first gut response is their work ethic/being a hard worker.  Unfortunately, some of us don't have jobs, so it is hard to demonstrate our work ethic.

Maybe it is how they give back, or what they produce? These, after all, are the things that have some sort of permanence in our world, even when we are gone.  But, that assumes some level of skill that would allow one to give back.

Then what about education and money?  But, the ignorant and poor have value.

Bootstraps McGee

These responses assume that the value of a person is in what they do, not in who they are.  Put another way--their value comes from external sources rather than from a general sense and acceptance of your own internal balance.

I never really think much about how someone can be valuable just for being who they are.  Which tends to make it tough for me to see value in myself, as I'm often stuck thinking about how if only I tried harder, somehow, I'd be able to pull myself up by my bootstraps.  I'm not successful, don't have a job, don't really do anything for society, don't contribute.  If anything, I'm a burden, because YOUR tax dollars go to support my lifestyle.

But, that is just silly-talk because I know that I have value as a person, and not only because my heart is beating.

So, what else gives a person value? What to I value, personally?

I value truth-tellers, who are generally at peace with themselves and the world and able to accept reality
I value people with the spark of curiosity; who want to figure things out and make them better
I value those who care about others over the long term--short term aid is easy to give in a time of crisis
I value the person who works as hard as they reasonably can within their abilities and talents
I value the less fortunate, because they understand being judged unfairly by others
I value those with a passion for life, even when life kicks em when they are down

I'm sure I could go on, and if we (the internetz) put our minds to it, I'm sure we could list a whole plethora of things that give people value.  But, I don't know that it really matters what 'defines' value because value has to come from within.  If I don't feel I'm valuable on my own, it doesn't matter how many people tell me I'm worthwhile as a person.  Don't get me wrong, it is nice to be reminded by others that I have value--but that is only a temporary fix.

It is somewhat ironic that I really don't trust most people, and yet I depend on others for my own sense of self-worth (even if it is temporary).  I'm dependent on others for as long as I need something external for a 'fix' of self-confidence.  This is one thing I need to be able to control, on my own.  What is more 'me' than my own sense of what makes me valuable as a person?