Author Kim Severson states if a writer wants to “…talk about life lessons, [she has] to write about why [she] needed the lessons, then it’s like unraveling a sweater. If you’re going to be honest and tell your story, there’s just no other way than to do it as authentically as you can.”
As a teen no one knew how self-conscious I felt about almost every aspect of myself. The self-consciousness translated into aloofness. I comported myself, or tried to, as though I had “it” all together and (I now realize) even presented a haughty demeanor—a vicious circle for a young girl who desperately needed to be liked for who she was.
I had a physically present but usually emotionally distant father. When he became emotionally “present” it was most often in a verbally contentious (though not abusive) manner. I seldom discussed personal problems with my mother as I knew how desperately she needed her world to be (or appear to be) ever loving, peaceful and calm.
Maybe that’s part of the reason I’ve had difficulty opening up and sharing my
