Kelly Foreman
Founder, Owner, and Creative Genius behind MopTop Junk-Free Haircare
I both love and dread this time of year. The busyness, the gifts (my love language is NOT gifts, it’s time!). I never know what to give when gifts are involved.
Every year I make a family calendar featuring pictures from the previous year’s photos in the coinciding months. I’m NOT a scrapbooker – this is about as crafty as I get and it helps me keep track of the memories as well as create a great gift for those “hard-to-purchase-for” people. Tackling this project takes a huge amount of time and is truly a labor of love. It gets me into a pretty reflective space, too.
This will be the third Christmas without my mom. I miss her so much. I catch myself picking up the phone to call her about something funny one of my girls said or did and realize she’s not there on the other end. She was FIERCE about the holidays and how we celebrated, so specific on what we ate, and that we were ALL there together. She was so intent on reinforcing the message that we love each other and we “belong” – there was no question of “fitting in”.
This time of year there we are all inundated with social gatherings. I’m what I call a social introvert… weird description, I know. I LOVE being out, and meeting and connecting with people, but I get overwhelmed and anxious. The worst part – I panic and forget names. I could tell you everything about who they are and how much I like them and their family, but *POOF* and the name is gone. This is my regrettable Achilles heel, because people want to be seen and known and called by name.
Most of us thrive on human connections and have a primal need to belong. We naturally “sort” ourselves and others into where we “belong”… and yet I have never really felt I belong.
I’ve just finished reading “Braving the Wilderness: The Quest for True Belonging and the Courage to Stand Alone”, by Brene’ Brown, and it really struck a chord with me. I so identify with this woman and her experiences growing up. I think we have walked the same roads and shared each other’s shoes! The only thing that could make me like her more is if she shared a similar hair story!
This book is so rich and deep that I will not do it justice in what I share with you, so I encourage you to check it out for yourself. Or give it as a terrific stocking stuffer!
Know that you belong… and embrace your natural beauty!
