That's one of the things about getting older isn't it? You suddenly realise that you are what you set out to be. And there are no role models any more.
I started in 1946 in radio. I was ten years old. I was discovered singing in a school play. Someone was in the audience and it's six degrees of separation.
The people who send us fan mail written in blood say the nicest things, so it doesn't freak us out too much.