I rarely watch the news but I did tonight because I was on! It's sort of exciting to think that word of my little project could be broadcast into thousands of homes, possibly moving people! So when I got the opportunity to be on Global's Calgary newscast, I came to Calgary early to be interviewed today. The interviewer fellow and the videographer were likeable chaps who put me through my paces a bit to try and get more interesting TV than just a normal reporter-asking-questions interview. They shot at the Green Fools Theatre and recruited a couple of people who happened to be there today to be the people I was speaking to about the project. (They were interested and interesting people who barely show up in the segment.) And they had me undress (not shown on TV, obviously, but they showed my pregnancy-swollen ankles as my pants dropped) and then wander around in a robe from the Green Fools' costume supply.
I felt like an idiot in the robe because it was too small. I was always clutching it together. My project requires some explanation and the approximately three minutes of air time (from more than an hour of shooting) focussed mostly on showing my pregnant belly and emphasizing the upcoming nakedness. My poor mother was worried that the reporters would ridicule the project (on the contrary they seemed genuinely interested) so she thought the segment was "exceptionally thoughtful." But I just thought anyone who saw it would have very little clue what the event or the project was about.
I'm not faulting the reporters. In fact I thank them for their interest, time and consideration. I used to write the Maclean's "People" page and my paragraph-size articles on various topics, some very worthy of note, had to fit a certain cutesy format.
The whole newscast tonight, not just my tiny spot, was so non-deep, so cutesy format (BIGGEST NEWS: David Beckham's $250 million contract; it turns out, though, he is doing it "for the kids of America"; lotsa pictures of tanned Posh with cleavage). Which is why I, I suppose, I never watch the news.
I want deep. I yearn for deep. Often I feel desperate for deep. I feel alone a lot because no one else seems to mind.
Ecofeminist, inconvenient prophet, artist, activist, cancer survivor, mother. Radical vulnerability on behalf of the collective. Using nakedness—literal+figurative. Processing my pain.
You are not alone, there are many of us crusading for the human body in it's natural form, as opposed to the silicone-augmented botox-injected airbrushed bodies that we see on TV and in advertising. Keep up the great work, if you come to Columbus, Ohio I will gladly stand nude with you.
ReplyDeleteI was driving home from a doctors appointment on Jan 12, 2007 when I heard a segment about you on CBC radio. I am a 30yr old mom, and I hate my body. To be fair, I didn't like my appearance before I was pregnant, but now that I have experienced pregnancy and natural childbirth, I can honestly say that I hate my body. I was very curious about your HBP, and I was eager to visit your website when I arrived home that day.
ReplyDeleteI want you to know that I think you are a very brave woman, and I admire your honesty and realness. At first I thought you must be crazy, but now I think you are the sane one. What you are doing is important, and you are right, we need to be more present in our daily lives. I suffered from an intense post partum depression after the birth of my son 14 months ago, and I appreciate your efforts to get people to step back and think about what is real and important. I wish that I had the guts to take off my clothes and stand beside you. Thank you for being so courageous. I envy your raw spirit.
I am afraid the little one does have some other project in mind...SORRY TO HEAR OF YOUR AILMENT.
ReplyDeletei hope you have recovered...thanx again for the email...
if i am getting it right tasha, your saying that the seeming superficiality all around
prevailing in this culture-(are bacteria for the culture, or is the culture for bacteria?...not origonally my thinking)- is the cause of your
feeling alone....what of independence/individuality?
I dont mean to be insensate, but do you feel more alone as the pregnancy saw its term?
I guess what i am saying is, how do you mean alone...is it intellectual, or emotional...
Now that you may be aware of the difference of our culturally proscribed "labels", i am curious to know what your first thoughts were/are when you found this info out?
ie: Typically, there is an unspoken bias and it goes something like the following; " oh, he's male and therefore could never understand what its like to...have a period/be pregnant/lactate...etc you fill in the blank...
Any way i dont think its too much too ask of my sister humanists to offer any insights.for example what i find fascinating(not wierdly either)is that over the last 43 yrs not 1 woman
has ever(there may be just one)offered information as to the physical feelings associated with pregnancy...i dont need a lesson in pain...nor is this a contest.
what i am saying is that while some like the one upmanship contest, If Tasha is right in the direction of the trend of this world (that the masculine and feminine energies are going to balance out...or perhaps need to, for the continuation of homo sapiens) then i am suggesting that the kind of language in use for communication needs to change/evolve in order for all persons to be able to convey to one another certain concepts/ideas thet are unfamiliar as yet.
No, tasha, you are not alone if by alone you mean you are somwhat ahead of your time.
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