As I edged my way towards my teen years, Helen Reddy’s song, “I Am Woman”, was adopted as the anthem of the Women’s Lib movement, catapulting it to the top of the music charts. This conflagration of events ignited my mother’s rebellion against my father’s restrictions. The irony of my mother's name being 'Helen' here … Continue reading the skin i’m in
Tag: different
As a child, I decided not to lie — at least not intentionally. It sounded like a good idea at the time. You see, I’d noticed that no matter how well I thought I was covering up whatever it was I was trying to hide, the grown ups always seemed to know when I wasn’t … Continue reading gag reflex
In my previous post, I referred to “the Voice”, the whispered wisdom that I hear in the deepest recesses of my mind, distinguishable from all other thoughts, each with their own personalities. The Voice has been my inner navigation system — my GPS, if you will. But I’m not going to talk about “the Voice” … Continue reading con game
I didn't count on this showing up. If I did, I might not have done it. Maybe it’s best that I didn’t know. I might have chickened out. I’ve done it before, you know. What began as an experiment — immersing myself in being fully visible, without a mask to hide behind by way of … Continue reading unacceptable
I’ve become fascinated, admittedly bordering on obsessed, with TED Talks regarding self image, concepts of beauty, and self esteem. A theme has emerged over the course of this project, which I will be exploring more deeply during the remainder of this month’s blogging challenge. There is literally more to it than meets the eye, which … Continue reading only words
Cesca has shared with me a BuzzFeed video blog that she found on FaceBook of a young woman who went for a week without make up. I watched it with interest, having had many similar experiences. I even laughed out loud when a co-worker who remarked at her looking tired since that is what I've … Continue reading seven days
During the course of this month’s blogging, I briefly noted the effects of external influences on our sense of self, how we perceive our value to society, and our basic sense of worthiness as a human being. (https://donnacerame.com/2014/11/16/more-than-meets-the-eye/) I admit, I paused before pressing ‘publish’ on that post. Having gone my entire life not making … Continue reading no judgment
As with so much else in our society, one’s sense of worth is derived from without, rather than from within. We often find ourselves defined by what we do and what we have, not who we are at the core of our being. I suspect this is a source of much pain for so many … Continue reading more than meets the eye
My husband, who knows me for 30+ years, tells me every so often that I think about things a lot.... He's told me that I make connections that most people don't. I used to take this as a criticism, believing there was something wrong with me. This was my perception, not his. So it comes as no surprise that … Continue reading pressing issues
It is my humble opinion that if you’ve taken this challenge,* you have earned the right to call yourself a writer until otherwise noted, which in this case is the thirty days of November. After that, you can regroup and reassess your position and I doubt there would be anyone who would question your reasons. … Continue reading goin the distance
Donna Cerame 