Be Self-Confident

“My mother said to me,
‘If you are a soldier, you will
become a general. If you are a
monk, you will become the Pope.”
Instead I was a painter,
and I became Picasso.’”

Pablo Picasso


Growing up, I was fortunate to have a “cool mom.” She was, and still is, very generous and hospitable. She was always at events and parties, usually with food. We would come home with friends and she would have fresh-baked cookies, and cheese and cracker and fruit platters, all laid out for us. She would go with us to water parks, set up a “home base,” and let us wander the water park and have a great time. She would arrive completely outfitted to fill any need we had: drinks in coolers, fresh towels, first aid kit, and cash for the funnel cakes. She has always been a great listener. I have been blessed to have the loving and accepting friend that I have in my mom, who has always been there to take my phone calls, no matter what time of day, and listen to my dramatic rantings about the craziness going on in my life at the moment.

She has always believed in me, and with her belief, I have always thought I could accomplish anything. When I would get wary and want to quit, she would encourage me to hang in there just a little longer to see whether things would change. I was always glad that I did. Whenever I stumbled, she was there, helping me build my self-confidence.

I was listening to a program that talked about what defines a “cool mom.” The speaker said it was a mom who lets the child get away with things that a “normal mom” wouldn’t. The speaker then went on to ask, “What is normal these days?” My four girls call me a “cool mom.” I am not sure that you could say I let them get away with things, but I do try to emulate my mom by being hospitable to their friends; I always try to have home-cooked food ready and available. I also try to listen to them, give them some freedom in decision making, offer advice to them when it doesn’t work out, and encourage them to try a little longer before they quit, just to make sure their minds don’t change.

So, I would like to thank my “cool mom,” Josie Keith, for helping me become the person I am and the “cool mom” I am to my children. Happy Mother’s Day.

Picture of Ladonna Armstrong

Ladonna Armstrong

Publisher of Aiken Bella Magazine.
Picture of Ladonna Armstrong

Ladonna Armstrong

Publisher of Aiken Bella Magazine.

In the know

Related Stories

Romance in the Rural South | Palmetto Bella

Romance in the Rural South

Humor is everywhere — you just have to keep your eyes and ears open. As I have always said, you can’t make this stuff up. I was speaking in a small town outside of Winchester, Virginia, around Valentine’s Day, and I mentioned to the audience that it warms a wife’s heart to be given fancy lingerie. After the program, a sweet young woman approached me and said how glad she was I had made that suggestion. “My husband only buys me the Hanes Her Way drawers that come up real high. They are nice drawers, but I sure would like some of them fancy high-cut drawers. The only thing I

Read More »
Scraps of Love | Palmetto Bella

Scraps of Love

It is a rather small scrap of simple cotton cloth. It is faded cream in color with a pattern of soft blue leaves printed across it. And it is fastened onto a large page of paper, along with half-a-dozen other small lengths of different bits of cloth and folds of ribbon. The page is one of many pages, bound into a very large, very old, book. And there are rows and rows of books just like it. And they are shelved and preserved within the Foundling Museum in London, England. England in the 1700s was constantly wet, slicked and grimed, bone-deep cold, with steel-colored skies and frozen rivers, struggling through

Read More »
A Dialogue with Singer Songwriter: Chris Ndeti | Palmetto Bella

A Dialogue with Singer Songwriter: Chris Ndeti

Recently, Bella Magazine caught up with Chris Ndeti for a round of 5 questions. Who were some of your musical heroes and influences growing up? Do you find elements of them in your work today? My mom grew up in Brooklyn during the 50s. She sang with her local girl group at The Apollo Theater before it was televised. So I grew up listening to the doo-wop, rock, and pop of that era. My dad is from Kenya, so I would listen to popular tunes from Kenyan artists. In my tween years I began branching out on my own music ventures. I started listening to an Atlanta radio station 99X.

Read More »
A Case for Self-Love | Palmetto Bella

A Case for Self-Love

Loving yourself unapologetically is the greatest thing you can do for another. Reread that sentence slowly. If everyone acted in soul-aligned, self-loving ways, what beauty could we create together? What happiness and harmony would ring throughout the world? Life would be magical for all. Instead, many of us seek acknowledgment or external love by bending into a pretzel of pain and misery. Let’s debunk the myth that self-love is selfish. If supplemental oxygen is deemed necessary on a plane, step one is putting on your own oxygen mask. It’s important to make sure you’re receiving oxygen before you help others — if you’re breathing, you can help provide breath for

Read More »