Promoting Tolerance; Inspirational Books & Things

Let us raise our children to believe in themselves... teach them from an early age that they can do and be whatever they set their minds to..

Self-esteem is the key!

Do you sometimes find yourself staring at others who are not typical in appearance? Do you often judge others based on what they are wearing, or their hair styles, or their choice in make-up? If the object of your staring is extremely obese or terribly anorexic, does it bring about uncomfortable feelings deep in your gut?

If you have answered any of these queries in the affirmative, then you are, unfortunately, a part of our society who puts way too much emphasis on outward appearance.

People who have well-developed self-esteems and who are comfortable in their own skin will have little problem ignoring such stares and taunts from others. However, how does one become so relaxed, so at ease, so confident in who they are?? Building self-esteem from childhood is definitely the key to having a happy and successful existence in our society. A society that places an excessive amount of significance on style, fashion, weight, and physical appearance.

What we should know about children and self-esteem is that it is an integral part of raising confident adults, competent employees willing to accept criticism from their bosses, and self-sufficient individuals who believe that they are capable of conquering the world, if they so desire!

Allow me to share for a moment, the story of a brave little girl who has become a real fighter, a tough cookie and a real inspiration in my life. I speak of my 2 year old granddaughter, Candace, who has recently undergone facial reconstruction surgery. Candace, in my opinion, was not prepared for this cruel, cruel world that we live in, when she was born. With a black hairy birthmark that covers most of her face, people, stared, whispered, shunned and ran from her. Other children called her names like "monkey girl" and "ugly". Candace's innocence and young age prevented her from retaliating, so she continued to try to play with these children, often to no avail. Heartbreaking, isn't it?

At the present time, Candace has two rather large expanders (saline filled "balloons") surgically implanted under her skin. In the next several weeks these protrusions will get rather large and unsightly and Candace will not know why people are staring at her. And, now that it is the month of Halloween, many people will think that Candace is made up for Halloween!!

One of my jobs as grandparent, is to help her to understand that she was born very, very special. It is my job to help to build her self-esteem as high as it can be in order to keep her motivated and her attitude positive. Candace learned to recite the alphabet, how to count up to 20, and how to sit on the potty, by age 18 months. My family encouraged her to draw, color, write her name, sing and dance.

In essence, there is nothing that Candace cannot do if she puts her mind to it.

No mountain is too high for her to climb!

Encouragement and praise go hand in hand when helping our youngsters to build their self-esteem. Candace has a long journey ahead of her, yet, I am confident that she will muster anything that comes in her path, good, bad, or indifferent.

That is the power of self-esteem.

© 2001,2008 Miriam L. Jacobs. All rights reserved.
No republication of this material, in any form or medium, is permitted without express permission of the author.

*written Oct 12 '01