Is it really just a story?

Or for that matter is it really just a doll? I watched the news tonight with Peter Jennings and happened to catch the last segment that discussed an uproar over a Hispanic doll named Marisol, the use of a true town in Chicago (I believe it was Chicago), and a little detail about it being too dangerous for her to play outside, so the parents decided to migrate to a new, “safer” suburb.

Now, many residents in the city have cried foul on this story and the writer, stating that she has hurt the city’s image and that the city is trying hard to make it a safer place, and by writing what she did, she negates the cultural flavor of the town. On the other hand, the writer and proponents of the story state that it is just that…a story.

So which is it? Is it just a story, or is there a responsibility to include truth and reality into the mix when preparing fiction for the public eye?

I guess I found this interesting because I was having a chat the other day with one of the members of my public board (Muscle Bunny, in fact), and I posed the following question: which came first, the story or the person? (Yes, this highly reminiscent of the chicken and the egg question; I realize that.) I used to tell my students to remember that behind every poem, every short story, every novel, every play, every song is a person. And behind every person is a story. So again, I ask…which came first?

See, would I be who I am today if I didn’t have a story behind my character and my name? But would that story be what it is without me? Ask yourself that in your own personal life. And if you ask why this matters, well, the next time you step out of bed, consider this: that new day is like a new chapter in your book. And you have control over how that chapter begins and how it ends to some extent. You can’t dictate who steps in and out of your life and what others do. But you do have power over yourself.

I need to remind myself of this all the time. I answered a post on another board about what I don’t like in the bodybuilding/fitness/figure industry. And there’s an awful lot that I don’t like about it. All in all though, the only thing I can do though is speak up here and there, not do the things that I don’t like that I see others do, and remember that I’m in control of my own destiny in this federation. Of course, I’m not perfect, and I will stumble, and that’s what makes the story. The one element that must be present in any plot is conflict. In realizing that, I don’t regret any conflict in my life (it may not have been the most joyous occasion to endure at the time, but I don’t regret it); it all adds color and flavor to my story.

All in all, it may be a little bit of fiction and a little bit of truth, but this doll will still be standing as tall as 4’11” will allow when it’s all read and done.

And all this thinking has me craving sweets. Well, it's either the thinking or the fact that I haven't tasted chocolate since this past Sunday since someone very mean made me start my diet. Oh...umm...wait. I am my trainer.

Off to bed. G'night everyone.

Jodi :)