How do YOU define Yourself?

How Do YOU Define Yourself    Lizzie Velasquez at TEDxAustinWomen



I LOVE this TED Talk! I am a big fan of TED Talks!  I can be a TED Talk junky some nights!   This particular one really spoke to me! When I was brainstorming the title for this blog I wanted something that was specifically me, about what I stand for and how I would describe my soul.  After some serious thought, one day, Dairy Woman Strong came to me...it is how I define myself.



In my life I have faced my share of adversity, surely not as much as this young woman Lizzie Velasquez, but I have had my share.  I am completely amazed at the strength of this woman.  Instead of feeling sorry for herself she took her situation, made the best of it and used adversity as accelerant for her goals and passions.  What a great example for all of us!  She didn't allow her situation or conditions define her or limit her.  Her possibilities are endless.



I am a woman, in a man's world.  Even in this day in age, women are not always treated with the same amount of respect as a man in agriculture.  I find it hilarious when a salesman would approach me asking for the man of the farm or to see my father or husband.  Where did it say this farm is run by a man? Where did it say that I was second in command?  Where did it say I just worked on this farm?  I also find it interesting in the professional world of agriculture, how many times someone scoffed at me because I was a woman trying to tell a man how to run their business or make it better.  I was once told my emotions would make me weak and less influential.  Interesting...I think my emotions as a woman are a strength not a weakness. Those instances in my journey could've made me bitter, they could've made me feel small or insignificant, but my parents taught me better than that. 



My parents, both my mother and my father, instilled in me the importance of knowing and loving who I was.  I was bullied in grade school, made fun of in high school, and picked on a little in college....I was the smart girl with the big dreams of becoming a farmer of all things.  Every time someone challenged me be saying I couldn't....I fought back harder, just to prove that I could.  Maybe it's the competitive nature of my personality or the fact that I am a first born, but I have always tried my best and my hardest to get what I am really passionate about.  And for me as an adult woman....I am passionate about God, dairy, farming, and family.  I know who I am and I know what defines me....so the question is...what defines YOU?  I define me....I am writing MY definition!