To see ourselves like those who love us do: Some of us achieve this, and some of us struggle. Sometimes it's our physical appearance that doesn't stack up, we believe, to being lovable. And sometimes it's a perceived failure deeper within. In her post "You're So Pretty" Ivana Kidd of The Phantom Line confronts her struggle in the midst of grief painted twice--the death of her mother and a miscarriage.

Even from such a brief glimpse into her struggle, we see how the pain of infertility had distorted her self-image.

"You're so pretty," Ivana's mother used to say to her. This was the last thing she said before slipping out of consciousness and dying. These words were often lost on Ivana:

It was like I had planted a rosebush in a pile of sand. I want to be angry at myself. I want to look in the mirror and say terrible things about how I failed at the most basic human capability. But something is stopping me.

What stopped Ivana was a lipstick. She believed she had given it to her mother before she died. She put on the lipstick and the realization hit: she could not hate herself.

"...as I looked in the mirror, I saw my reflection and the face of the person who has kept me from what I want most in the world. But it is also the face my beloved mother treasured so much she used her last words on this earth to complement it."

Ivana's simple, but profound, realization has compelled her readers and us to select her as the BlogHer of the Week.
 

Thanks to everyone for continuing to send in your nominated posts. Remember to nominate individual posts, not entire blogs, and keep them coming! If you want to check out all the BlogHer of the Week posts, check out the BlogHer of the Week archive.

Best,

Jory

For Elisa, Jory and Lisa
BlogHer Co-founders