Sitting in the bush on a hot Saturday afternoon was not something I really wanted to do. I wanted to be home where I could just watch television or listen to music in my room. I hated having to wear trainers and long socks, I worried about ticks and snakes and goannas and dirt in general. I did not like having to go without showers and I just wanted a clean place to sit. I do remember being thankful that there were no boys around, it was good to have a break from that angst.
We were taken on a drive on the back of a ute around the property we were camping on. There were old mines all over the property and we were encouraged to go in some of the shafts to look around. I didn't particularly like the feeling of being under earth in the middle of the bush, of course the younger girls screamed and cried and worried about Bunyips.
I was 16 at the time. I was not good at being 16. My skin was bad, my teeth were bad, I hated my body and I wished I had never cut my hair. I was neither smart nor dumb. I was neither pretty nor ugly. I was neither popular nor unpopular. I was in the middle, average, no ripples.
I wish I could reach into this photo and tell this self-conscious girl that she is going to be okay. That she will find her way in time, that life gets better. I would tell her that life is what you make it, that life is more than the sum of parts; bad skin, bad teeth, big bottom - they are not the sum of who that girl is. I would tell this girl to travel, to learn and to dream. I wish I could tell her those things. I wish someone had....
Everyone has a favorite photo of themself, whether it’s a childhood snapshot, a professional graduation or wedding photograph, or a close-up taken amongst friends.
Some say a photograph steals the soul. This week, show us yours: take us into the moment that photograph was taken. Show us who you were then and what the photograph means–in 300 words.
