Friday, January 18, 2013

Beauty


I have 3 links to share and they’re all related in some way.





My poem “All Set” appears on Leaves of Ink today. 
It’s a good way for me to start the new year. 




Sheri Larsen has decided to start her 
new year with a  Writer's Creed
I’m taking the creed too. Want to join with me?



For my last link, I turn back to my poem, which is all about a girl’s perception of how she’s supposed to look, what’s beautiful. This video from Dove shows an "Onslaught' of images a girl would receive today. I hope my ten-year-old daughter never has to compare herself to this narrow definition of “beauty.”

Write, live, love beautifully. xo



60 comments:

  1. Congratulations on All Set! I just read it and was so touched by it. What a powerful poem. Great work!

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  2. Some of those images in the video are disturbing. While I believe in healthy and athletic, I also believe in natural.

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    1. Alex, I agree with you. The surgery parts are the most disturbing of all.

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  3. I love your poem! What a valuable message. Congratulations~

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  4. Hi Theresa .. just been over - it's a sad reflection of youth isn't it - I never had enough hair to do anything with ... I'd love to have a good head of hair - then I think of all my squash playing days ... and how often the hair got showered and easily dried.

    The video was terrible to see ... just glad I don't have a 10 year old daughter to worry about ... cheers Hilary

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    1. Hilary, I'm way to obsessed with my hair. Thinking about its usefulness is a nice perspective. Cheers to you too.

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  5. Very awesome poem. I could totally relate to it. Thanks for sharing it.

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    1. Natalie, thank you. I like that people can relate to the poem.

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  6. Loved this three-part post, Theresa! I signed up for the Writer's Creed - it's an awesome concept. Your video from Dove was disturbing, but thought-provoking. Thanks for another great post!

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  7. Very awesome! I'm showing this to my 12yo daugther when she gets home--all of it! She's a poet and has been looking for some competitions to enter her poems, so she'll love you:-)

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    1. Jamie, have you signed up for Duotrope? Also, Excuse Editor sends a monthly email list of submissions and competitions.

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  8. A very disturbing video! I keep wondering . . . how did we get here? Ads are worse than they were in the 60s. We were supposed to be getting away from all that.

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    1. Elizabeth, I don't think we've ever gone in the other direction. What's left at this point?

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  9. I like the theme of your post today. Your poem is scarily relatable. I love the creed too. I should stick it up somewhere I can read it everyday as a reminder.

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  10. Congratulations! I love that tag line at the end. I will try to write beautifully as I edit...

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    1. Deniz, I'm going to have to do some beautiful revisions starting tomorrow. I received some critique feedback.

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  11. Congratulations on your poem!

    The video was mind-boggling. There's an awful lot of advertising that wears down on a person's self-esteem.

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    1. The Golden Eagle, so true. We can't tie our worth into ads.

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  12. That is Powerful Stuff!! Congrats on your poem too - awesome!

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  13. Congrats on your poem! I really enjoyed watching the video, nice stuff!

    www.modernworld4.blogspot.com

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  14. I left a comment on the link with your poem, but I wanted to leave a comment here too. I think your poem is great. I remember what it felt like to a little girl and hoping that my hair would turn me into someone beautiful, and how disappointed I was when it ended up looking completely different than I imagined. I think the way you described it really nailed it. Great job!

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    1. Neurotic Workaholic, it seems many of us had love/hate (or hate/hate) relationships with our hair along with other aspects of our appearance. Nice to know people can relate to this poem.

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  15. I think if I hadn't been surrounded by brothers growing up, that poem would have been me. =) As it is, I was lucky to have hair they hadn't chopped off so they could call me "Cris." *shaking head* It's so interesting the different memories we come away with, eh?

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    1. Crystal, if I grew up with boys, I'd be an even bigger mess!

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  16. Love that creed! and I enjoyed reading your poem (congrats!). :) Very poignant. And eep, the video--the surgery part was really scary...

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    1. Carol, thanks. The surgery part of the video bothered me too.

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  17. Hi Theresa!

    Loved your poem. Congratulations!

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  18. The writer's creed sounds very sensible! :) Would be great if we could do all those things.

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    1. LR, yes, it would be great if we could stick with the writer's creed.

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  19. I saw a grotesque display of beauty on display in my recent Las Vegas vacation. Allow me to elaborate: The scholarship competition known as the Miss America pageant was in town at Planet Hollywood.

    One of the girls, Miss New Mexico, said proudly before cameras that she has had "work done" to achieve physical perfection. She also said that any girl who doesn't have this work done...that needs a little nip and tuck here and there...she points it out. She makes that girl realize her physical flaws and that she should be ashamed of them.

    I was floored. My point in saying this (I think) is that as a society both men and women want the very best in life. As entitlements to "the very best" continue to increase with every generation, so does competition for those entitlements. The villain in "The Incredibles" said, "In a world where everyone is super, no one is super."

    If we think about this for a moment...every new generation wants to be "super" or feels entitled to this. When it doesn't happen, we get kids who are suicidal, depressed, angry at the world, etc. That's just my take on it.

    And the drive to be super pushes every child to try and become physically perfect in order to get those things that they feel they deserve. Plastic surgery is becoming more and more rampant at an earlier and earlier age.

    It's absolutely terrible. I've heard that there's a new drug called Provigil. Everyone that's successful is using it. What does this mean to you and me, Theresa? It means that if we aren't using Provigil...if we aren't taking a drug...then we won't be successful.

    I'm honestly depressed at how the world is becoming, at how awful and superficial people seem to have taken all the best that there is in society and now stand as icons of success to countless others broadcasting that image.

    Look at Lance Armstrong. He's an icon that said to countless millions (before he got caught) the only way you can achieve this is through performance enhancing drugs. Everyone in the business knew this but it wasn't widespread. However if you got into the business of cycling, sooner or later you'd come face to face that no matter how gifted you were, you'd need to dope to be on the same playing field as those that competed. Lance Armstrong should be so ashamed of himself, but I don't think he is.

    Ugh...I'm sorry this comment is so long. But it just touched a nerve.

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    1. Michael, Miss New Mexico sounds like a lovely role model. I'm shaking my head. It's sad for her, really.

      Lance Armstrong is pretty upsetting. He bullied people for keeping his silence for years. He ruined lives, like the poor woman who said he was doping back in 2003. She lost all her savings to pay for the suit he made against her. He was a hero. All those other bicyclists who played by the rules lost 7 years to beat him. It's unbelievable how selfish he'd been just to win. From the excerpts I've heard, he doesn't sound all that sorry.

      Rant away. This topic make me ranty too.

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  20. Congrats, Theresa,
    Thanks for sharing that. It does seem that everywhere we look, we are being told how we should look. Deep final statement that I agree with. We should ground our children before advertising twists their image of who they should be.

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    1. JL, I couldn't agree more. My daughter is confident now, and I don't her to lose that confidence.

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  21. Congrats on your poem! That Writer's Creed sounds like something we all should consider:)
    Nutschell
    www.thewritingnut.com

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  22. Great poem, Theresa! I played Charlie's Angels as a child. I was always Kelly- :) due to my brunette hair and name, but my hair was super short!
    I've never seen that Dove ad. It really opens eyes, doesn't it. My parents raised me with confidence. They always told me I was strong, beautiful and smart. ( and believe me, I was VERY awkward from ages 9-14). I believed them. I really, really hope I can instill the same confidence as my parents did in my own daughter.

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    1. Kelly, due to my curls and young age, I got to play Cindy Brady with my cousins. I always felt ugly even BEFORE I hit those awkward years. I'm not exactly sure where it came from. My daughter feels much more confident. I hope it stays that way. I tell her she's smart and beautiful everyday.

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  23. That is some onslaught!

    Congratulations on your poem and I love Sherri's creed.

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  24. All body types and beauty should be celebrated ... although, all that has been around for generations. It needs to stop. I think that's how women get so insecure and tend to think we're never good enough. Will go read your poem.

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    1. M Pax, I agree. My sister just sent me an article about how we talk to little girls. We often bring up appearance. I'm going to be careful about what I point out when I speak with children.

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  25. There's a DVD called "Killing Us Softly." I sometimes show it in my Critical Thinking class. It discusses the impact that the images used in advertising have on women. If you can find it, it might be valuable to watch with your daughter.

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  26. Missed Periods, I never hard of it. Thanks for the info.

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  27. Congratulations on your poem, Theresa! And yes I agree with you, as a mum.

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  28. I have such a hard time with the messages sent to our girls (and boys about how to perceive girls) in popculture. I have one tomboy and one popstar at my house. As they grow up, I pray they have the confidence to become whatever it is that they find the most joy in becoming. They already are amazing individuals and I hope they stay that way.

    Huge congrats on the poem! Big hugs!

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    1. Jackee, I do too. Rap has always gotten the attention because it's so ove the top, but it's everywhere. I try compliment my daughter and son for the looks, brains, and kindness. I'm an = opportunity complimenter.

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  29. dropping by to say hi. Really glad you're on twitter :D
    Nutschell
    www.thewritingnut.com

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  30. It is a great way to start the year! Congrats! :)

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