Self-Image and Self-Worth

I've always tried to instill within my daughter a sense of her intrinsic worth as a person. Sadly, two major male figures in her life have laid waste to my hard work and erratic positive reinforcement. Instead of being lovingly treated as the wonderful gift with which God entrusted us, she was treated otherwise. I wish that she would trust me enough to share her feelings. All of them, not just her feelings of anger. In order to heal, one must release.


Why do we put so much store in what others think of us? The other day someone told me I'm "as cute as a button". What?! I'll admit, there are some cute buttons out there. However, when I'm getting dressed in the morning, it's not with the aim of achieving button-level cuteness. :)

Pic snagged from here.

Perhaps I'm taking the button comment the wrong way. It could be the fact that the comment seems a bit patronizing, reminiscent of "Well, bless your heart." In Texas, that's akin to saying, "You poor thing, you're pathetic." I think not!

This weekend, I went to Pleasant Grove to have some needed work done on my car. It was like stepping into another world. I was called beautiful, baby, sweetheart, even mama! You know, all those terms that can be either offensive or affirming, depending on what type of female you are. Well, I'm the type of female that took it all as a compliment. By the end of the evening, I was not feeling at all like a button-faced chica with a good work ethic.

FYI: Gentlemen, when you're trying to get in good with a woman, whatever you do... don't tell her you want to get to know her better because she's got a good work ethic. However true that may be, a woman usually wants to hear something about how cute and special she is. And please, please, PLEASE, don't compare her to a button!! Am I bitter? Not at all. Annoyed? Okay, a bit! :)