Our last Parent Weekend was another weekend full of experiential activities, in-depth processing and fun with our families, who came from all around the country.
The theme for the weekend was Reality. When Reality is fully developed in us, we can say, “I can accept and grieve the losses related to the imperfections in myself, others and the world around me. Rather than think of myself as ‘good’ or ‘bad,’ I choose to embrace that I am loved.”
We talked a lot about our Ideal Self versus our Real Self and learning to embrace who we are – the good and the ugly – knowing that we will be loved regardless. On clay pots, our girls wrote words that described their ideal selves. When finished, the pots included such phrases as beautiful, successful, role model, go to college, be athletic, marry the right man, be smart and so many more.
Our families were led through a process that examined all of their daughters’ ideas of self-imperfection, where those negative messages may have come from, and how they could be replaced with positive truths. Each family then shattered their daughter’s pot to symbolize breaking through the ideal. Families painted each piece, glued the pot back together, and talked through the beauty of being real and loved, broken and beautiful. This was a powerful experience!
Throughout the rest of the weekend, we had other instructive moments and a scavenger hunt, and everyone participated in a bracelet-making class with our program friend, Sue, who works with our girls in making clay bracelets that display messages such as “Real>Ideal” or “I love me” or just “Loved.”
These weekends are treatment highlights for our families, and we look forward to our time together next month!