I realised in the middle of the night - which is when we realise all great or stupid things - that the one thing I regret in life more than any thing else is this - I didn't believe in myself.
I have lost opportunities. I have seen small rocks that needed kicking out of the way as enormous insurmountable walls. I have assumed that I don't deserve the opportunity in front of me or I'm not up to it.
I've not been much better in my relationships. I haven't stood up to people treating me badly and said 'No More!'I assumed that somehow I deserved to be treated badly - that I was simply more unlovable than other people. And the problem with this is that there are always people around who will take the opportunity to treat others badly - especially if they are getting away with it.
When the editor of The Age (remember newspapers) wrote to me and said the cartoon I'd sent him just needed a couple of changes I said, 'Oh it's been rejected.' And threw the cartoon out when I should have said, 'I'm nearly there,' changed it and sent it back. When I won an award for my first manuscript I said,'It's a fluke' When I should have said, 'Wow publisher's like my work!' When people treated me badly I said, 'There's something wrong with me' when I should have said, 'There's something wrong with you.'
I do believe that not believing in myself comes from having a truly dreadful childhood, with inept parents who didn't affirm my lovability as a little kid. But! And its a big but. There is a point where we all become accountable for ourselves as adults and can no longer blame our parents, no matter how crap they were, for anything.
Of course I did the typical bad childhood thing and as soon as I got the opportunity I tried to create my own safe loving family where I could believe in myself but the problem with this is that families are ever changing creatures - like life. Your children grow. They find out you aren't invincible. They find out you are fractured. You can't keep them as children forever or you become the terrible parent you are trying to escape.
If I could go back and change my life I would believe in myself more.
So my daughters and sons dear - believe in yourselves. Say the right things to yourselves. Expect the best for yourself. Because it turns out that RuPaul is right. If you can't love yourself - How you gonna love someone else? Can I get an Amen in here!