Who I am, in 10 words

Have you ever tried to define yourself in 10 words? It is an interesting process that forces you to think about who you are and how you want others to see you. DH and I had a discussion about this a while ago. The interesting thing was where "Mormon" fell on our lists (if you assume the first thing is most important, last thing least).

My list went something like this:

Woman, wife, mother, Mormon, daughter, sister, artist, friend... (those last few were hard to nail down).

 

My fear in putting "Mormon" so high on the list is that others would view my list and think I am a religious zealot or something. Not to mention, what does "Mormon" even mean?

To me, putting 'Mormon' high on my list gives homage to the wonderful influence the gospel has had on my life. It is hard to find some part of my life it doesn't influence. My parents were both raised Mormon, their lives impact mine greatly - how do I measure what part of them is due to the church's influence? Then there is my husband -the most important person in my life - he was also raised in the church, as were his parents. We teach our children the gospel and they, in return, impact my life. We go to church every Sunday, read scriptures, discuss the doctrine and how to apply it in our lives. Many of the intellectual concepts I hold dear have some root in concepts I first learned within the rich environments of the church. Some of the best people I've known in my life, who have greatly impacted me for good, would not have crossed my path without the vehicle of the church.

So whether you know what "Mormon" really means to me, or if you have a more sinister view, it remains a large part of who I am.

I am a Mormon Woman.

You may say, "What exactly is a Mormon Woman anyway?"

Lucky for us there is a new website dedicated to explaining just this. On Thursday one of my essays will be posted on the Mormon Women website. I could not be more flattered and humbled to be included with the wonderful mormon women on this site. Check it out, ask a question, leave a comment, or tell them if you're a mormon woman too! 

While you're still here, tell me - Who are you?

(in 10 words or less of course)  

Comments

[readerMom]

1.

It's only Wednesday isn't it. I just went to the website and was getting irritated I couldn't find you. I guess I need to read more carefully and look at a calendar occasionally.
Me in ten words would be very similar to yours, I think sometimes these broad labels don't apply, because as much as I am a woman, wife, mother, mormon, sister, friend, thinker, reader, gardener, lazybutt. I have a lot of characteristics that are different from others who might have a similar list of words. Especially those who think a "Mormon" woman is a cliche have never experienced the range of who Mormon women can be.

[jendoop]

2.

It is there now.

You are right Kathy, I think defining yourself in 10 words does result in alot of cliches being thrown around. Keeping that in mind, it remains interesting.

[Janelle]

3.

Oh I'd say I'm also a Mormon Woman.

But then I'd add happy, mother, wife, daughter of God and parents, sincere, fun, spiritual, spontaneous and it's a tie between smart and cute - because I can be both.

What a great introduction to mormonwoman.org. I hope you saw in the comments over there that I really loved your essay.

Thanks for sharing it.

[m&m]

4.

I'm a Mormon, daughter, wife, mother, sister, friend, writer, brainstormer, networker, amateur musician

And I loved this post.

And to Kathy, I think part of why the Mormon Women site exists is to show how varied we are in our interests, talents, and life circumstances -- and yet, to show how common threads of belief are woven through our lives.

Maybe it would be interesting to do a list of 10 words that describe roles, talents, or interests, and then another 10 words that are more like adjectives. (Not that I have any right to come change your game...just thinking about how a simple activity like this could reflect the variation between women who have similar roles in their lives.)