Barbara Eberhard's Blog - Posts Tagged "insults"
Childhood Insults
Is there something that happened when you were a kid that you still haven't gotten past all these years later? Some insult? Some slight? Some teasing?
Anna has those feelings still. Something that many other people - her mother included - see as a minor incident she should have gotten past. But she hasn't.
In this case, the insult stings so much because it felt too real, too right. Even though she's long since grown up and no longer sees herself as inferior to anyone, she can't forget the pain that little girl felt to be accepted and then rejected by the rich friends of her childhood best friend. The rich son of a rich family, who had befriended her as not so different after all. Or so she had thought.
So, reliving being called Raggedy Ann hurts Anna, even though she's grown up. Even though she's a successful writer. Even though she's worth more - financially - than the people who once called her that name.
In today's writing, Anna finds out that the origin of that nickname was not some random guy who knew Andrew all those years ago. But was, in fact, Andrew himself. That Andrew was the first to call her Raggedy Ann.
And the pain she thought she had gotten past - or that had at least receded to the point she could handle it - is right there. Again. Raw.
Anna has those feelings still. Something that many other people - her mother included - see as a minor incident she should have gotten past. But she hasn't.
In this case, the insult stings so much because it felt too real, too right. Even though she's long since grown up and no longer sees herself as inferior to anyone, she can't forget the pain that little girl felt to be accepted and then rejected by the rich friends of her childhood best friend. The rich son of a rich family, who had befriended her as not so different after all. Or so she had thought.
So, reliving being called Raggedy Ann hurts Anna, even though she's grown up. Even though she's a successful writer. Even though she's worth more - financially - than the people who once called her that name.
In today's writing, Anna finds out that the origin of that nickname was not some random guy who knew Andrew all those years ago. But was, in fact, Andrew himself. That Andrew was the first to call her Raggedy Ann.
And the pain she thought she had gotten past - or that had at least receded to the point she could handle it - is right there. Again. Raw.
