Issue date: 3/31/08 Section: Features

Media Credit: Howard McCullough Dr. Arlene King Berry Associate Professor of Special Education, enlightens students, faculty, and staff at the Women's Initiative.

    I gazed at my reflection in the mirror handed to me. I took in the ovular eyes, reminding me of a photo of myself when I was five. The eyes were still wide and curious, taking everything in. I willed myself to ignore the pimples on my forehead, or the bags under my eyes from lack of sleep. Overall, I still looked good and felt it, which is why I was here at this seminar.

    "Okay, ladies. Ready?" The room still buzzed with excitement at what was to come. "Ready?" The voice asked again. "Usually it does not take this long for my first grade class to quiet down." she joked. We all had good reason to talk and joke. If you had attended Thursday's program, "Discovering the Inner Beauty in You," you would have a wide grin on your face and an even wider one in the inside. The seminar was the fourth in a series of programs celebrating Women's History Week sponsored by The Women's Initiative here at UDC.

    "Okay. 1, 2, 3..." Dr. Arlene King-Berry, one of the Co-presenters of the March 6 event went on once more. Then, with our mirrors in hand, looking at our reflections, we sang the words to Mary J. Blige's song "Just Fine."

    "So I like what I see when I'm looking at me when I'm looking past the mirror. No stress through the night, at a time in my life. Ain't worried if you feel it." Good thing others were singing over me! It was an excellent way to celebrate being ourselves, women of color in a welcoming environment.

    We had already been hyped up by Dr. Sandra Jowers-Barber who gave her presentation a moment before. She introduced us to the topic of inner beauty as "who you are when the make-up is off and when the purse is on the night stand [before you go to bed,]… When you walk into a room and people say 'we are so glad you came…'" Dr. Jowers-Barber had the audience read "Phenomenal Woman" by Maya Angelou, another sistah with inner beauty.

    "Maya Angelou's poem described Black women [in a way that] they have never been talked about." she informed us. Furthermore, she revealed Angelou's wisdom in every line.

    I had to agree. There are not many positive pictures of women-of color in the media. As I looked around the room and watched how all of my beautiful sisters interacted with each other, I wondered why I don't see more of this often. Dr. Jowers- Barber answered the question for me. She noted that many of us, especially those of a younger generation, do not have many role-models in our neighbor hoods to emulate. Her remedy for this was "to make a positive [situation] out of a negative, compliment other women… pick sisters [who will look out for you and have your best interests at heart]." Dr. Jowers- Barber then concluded her presentation providing us with important literature including a sheet with her "Ten (Plus One) Steps to Inner Beauty."

    I took something with me from both speakers; Dr. Jowers-Barber defined what inner beauty is, and Dr. King-Berry showed how we could use our inner beauty and intelligence in the real world.

    It was my first time being introduced to these two fine women. More surprising was the fact that they were professors here on campus! One thing is certain, these two women have inspired me to look deeper within myself and discover who I really am, and who I am meant to be.

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