5 Traits I Liked in Myself as a Child

found via a writing exercise...

1. Roving Imagination
I remember being so creative when I was a little girl. Some neighbors had a weeping willow tree, and my friends & I used to pretend it was a magic forest.

2. Fearless Fashion Sense
I cringe now at the ensembles I used to create, but in reality, I was stylin' & profilin' at an early age. Until the age of 5 I refused to wear anything but dresses and skirts. I remember Mama made me this FABULOUS denim tiered skirt that I wore with sparkley Beauty & the Beast t-shirts from the Disney Store. Let's recap. Denim. Tiered. Skirt. I also remember being a big proponent of stirrup leggings and long sweaters. My only problem was that going to Catholic school, you're limited as a child to really play with your wardrobe. But what I did wear, I wore with abandon. And let's not forget jelly shoes. I rocked jelly shoes like I invented the shit.

3. Fast Friend
I possess 2 qualities that might make other people shy: I am a military brat AND an only child. Translation: I moved around a lot and had no automatic playmate. I was forced to make friends quickly, or else I was always doomed to be "the new girl." I just slapped on a smile and talked to people like I knew them. This trait has followed me through high school, college and I'm hoping I still have it here in the post-grad universe.

4. Being "Arty"
I wish I was arty, but ironically enough I'm too OCD for it, although I'm non-OCD about lots of other things in my life. When I was a little girl I would finger paint and color and not care how the end result turned out. Now, if my art creation is not perfect, I hate it. That's why I stopped going to my drawing class in Paris. I was good with the basics, but once I surpassed a certain level of expertise and couldn't master the next step, I got frustrated and gave up. I used to take Saturday art classes all through my younger grade school years, and I remember even going to an art day-camp at a local botanical garden when I lived in Virginia.

5. Fearless Performer
When I was a little girl, I was ALWAYS putting on shows for my parents. This is something a lot of kids did, but in my experience it is people with big family who could put on legitimate productions. I would push the sofas out of the way, and perform dance and lipsync routines for my parents all the time. It was how I passed my time alone when there was no playdate lined up. I distinctly remember performing a dance to "Heard It Through the Grapevine" by Marvin Gaye. I would also come home from dance practice and give my parents a recital in the living room each night. My mother commented that when I was concentrating on my dancing, I stuck my tongue out. She thought it was unsightly, but looking back, I love that. I was totally unafraid of looking goofy, and completely swept up in the moment.