It really is something...

...how the way in which a person was raised affects the adult that they grow into. Sure, it's something that has felt completely obvious and simple to me. My parents raised me to be a strong, stubborn, intelligent, and responsible person...and that is what I have become. But at the same time, I was taught (in various ways) some sense of self-doubt, and a difficulty handling the anger of others.-----That I just realized tonight. I haven't had a completely positive experience with the men and boys in my life growing up...which makes it hard for me to relate to males outside of my own family. Anger is and always has been something that scares me, an emotion that unlocks a fearful little girl inside of me that wants to run upstairs to her room and bawl her eyes out until it all goes away. Or it makes me completely shut down, making it even harder for me to communicate much of anything effectively. I think it could do us all some good to take a look at our own childhoods, and see if there are any glimmers of the positives AND the negatives in the people that we are today. No rose-colored glasses. A purely objective look that is willing to see the good as well as the bad. At least I've seen it, can acknowledge it, and now I've got a leg up so I can fix it.