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Yesterday I was trying out the nifty new camera my brothers sent, and as I watched what I recorded three things came to mind – although it took all day for them to do so.

The first is I was reminded of that old joke: A man goes to his 30^th high school reunion and says to his wife, “Wow! Everybody got old but me!”

BELLA WHO?

Because we never think of ourselves as old. I find myself still wondering what I’m going to do when I grow up. I still get the occasional urge to wear glitter in my hair and think that if Edward Cullen lived in Iowa instead of Washington he would have picked me instead of that silly ol’ Bella.

The second is that it turns out I rarely look in a mirror. When it comes to mirrors I’m like the muggles in the Harry Potter books when they come across a wizard building: My eyes slide right past them or any other shiny object without really seeing. Mirror? What mirror?

Therefore I was surprised when I truly saw myself for the first time in a long time. Yikes! What happened?

But the third and final thought came to me after a day of sorting through all of these old dolls of mine. None of them is perfect. Each one of them bears the signs of being well-loved and having been someone’s favorite plaything at some point in their lives. Their wigs – if they still have them – are thin or sometimes show the results of an amateur haircut. Their lip paint is chipped and worn, their bodies are scuffed and their fingers and toes are frequently missing. And I still love them, even with their flaws. In fact because of their flaws. Shouldn’t I treat myself with the same kindness?

Shouldn’t we all?

And, Edward! IOWA. Think about it!

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