Mahana You Ugly!
"Mahana You Ugly!" The first time someone said that to me, I was not laughing. In fact, I was preparing to open up a can of whoop-fast. Luckily just before his face hit the pavement, someone mentioned something about a movie (assault charge averted). The first time someone called me an 8-cow woman, they had 8 seconds to explain to me why they had just called me a heifer. Something was said about "Johnny Lingo" and I think they took off running. About 5 years ago I finally saw the movie Johnny Lingo, and that person had it twisted, I am a million-cow woman! For all of you who learned the hard way that not everyone has seen this movie, I feel for you. For those of you out there who have never seen this movie, please know that if you ever find yourself trying to figure out if a Mormon has just referred to you as an ugly cow, they may have actually been trying to give you a compliment.
Johnny Lingo is a 1969 LDS film. In Johnny Lingo, Mahana is a young woman who is constantly told she is ugly, she believes she is ugly and she appears to be ugly. Once her suitor is willing to pay an unprecedented 8 cows for her to become his bride, she becomes beautiful in appearance.
The argument has been made that the story of Johnny Lingo focuses on physical beauty and the idea that a woman can only see herself as a beautiful woman once a man finds her attractive. I often think of self-worth as something that you define for yourself, people shouldn’t need to tell you that you’re amazing, you should already know and believe that you are. However, as I contemplate the story of Johnny Lingo, I actually find a message of power. The power we have to change attitudes, responses, how others feel about us, and yes, how others may feel about themselves.
One school year my Mother had the ludicrous idea to send us to our non-uniform wearing public school in uniforms. She sewed us 4 hideous uniforms. One for each day of the week and then we could repeat one on Fridays. Most of the Uniforms were skirts, which we wore knickers under so we could go to P.E. and not have to the change. (If you don’t know what knickers are don’t feel bad, I think only my family and pioneers do.) The collection wasn’t even cohesive (I've been watching too much Project Runway). There was a pink and black polka-dotted skirt, which was just a poodle shy of needing saddle shoes to go with it. I don’t know what "General Store" my Mother found the fabric for the other uniforms in, but if you ever catch a rerun of Little House on the Prairie, you’ll see Laura Ingalls Wilder wearing the jumper-dress she sewed us. Oh, and yes, of course mine and my sister’s uniforms were matching, what’s that you ask, are we twins? Nope! My sister and I were seriously traumatized!
The first week of school our classmates just thought that we were shopping at the ugly store, but by the third week of school they began to see a pattern. I didn’t attend one of those schools where the other kids whispered and made fun of you behind your back. I attended the kind of school where kids just shouted at you from across a crowded lunchroom, “Girl, why you wearing the same ooglay (worse than ugly, so ugly it’s ooglay) outfit every day.” Although I felt like someone should report my Mother to Child Protective Services, I had made up my mind that I was going to own those ooglay uniforms. “Why you wearing that same ooglay face every day,” I replied. I wasn't being mean, that’s just how you nip it in the bud where I come from.
I told my friends that I was wearing uniforms this year because I didn’t want to take the time to pick out something new every day. Plus, I got way more sleep since I didn’t need to wake up and pick something to wear. “It was my idea but, you know the lil’ Sis has to copy everything I do. Told my Mom not to make us the same uniforms, but the lil’ Sis was buggin, so I was like, it’s cool.” Of course my BFF knew what was up and she had my back. She’d say, “Girl that skirt is bomb, where’d you buy that, I need to get me one.” I would say, “Thanks girl, my Mama made it, it’s an original, you can’t just get this off the rack.” She bought a plaid skirt and she would wear hers to school. Of course hers was name brand, short and cute, but I really appreciated it.
So although I still can’t believe my Mother did that to me, the school year didn’t turn out to be a complete disaster because I realized that I GOT THE POWER! So the next time you’re in a situation where you can effect positive change in your attitude, the attitude of others, how someone else perceives themself or how others perceive you, do it, cause YOU GOT THE POWER!
For those of you who have never seen Johnny Lingo, here you go!
God is Love,
Sista Laurel
