“As a youth and even into adulthood, I never felt like I fit in,” explains the author of “I Am Lovable” Kimberly Dawn.
“As I grew into adulthood I found myself comparing myself to others and thinking that if I could change the way I look on the outside maybe that would make me more lovable and happier and fit in more,” she adds. The Maynooth resident says that with social media being more and more prevalent in today’s world, it only adds to the negative image someone may have of themselves. “With social media, youth and adults will get tied into that and see these mages and think that if they look like that person they will be happier,” Dawn says. She adds that what you see on Instagram, may not be what that person’s life is really like. “It’s the image they’re looking to get across,” she says.
Dawn says making the book title an affirmation was important. “The ‘I am’ statement is very powerful,” she says. “Even if you’re not feeling lovable it’s very important you put these messages in your brain.”
For the past decade, Dawn has been off social media. She only got back on recently as she began promoting the book. She explains that taking that time off helped her a lot because she took the time to learn about who she is. “Who you really are is on the inside,” she says.
That’s the message she tries to get across in “I Am Lovable” which is based on her story as a kid. In the book, the fictionalized version of Dawn is made fun of at school. She looks to her aunt for support, she gets told she isn’t “cool” so she decides to make herself look more like the women she sees on magazine covers, which she hopes will make her more “lovable.” After taking the time to meditate, she realizes that she is lovable the way she is and doesn’t have to cut her hair or change her clothes to fit the image she sees on magazine covers. She eventually starts creating art and offering free yoga sessions to classmates to help them feel lovable too.
Dawn, who is also a yoga teacher, says meditating like her fictionalized-self does in the book is a great start to improving yourself. “How you start your day is so important,” she says. Dawn says all it takes is five minutes of meditation to help “reset your day.”
To promote the book, she will be at the Bancroft Legion on March 20th for North Hastings Children’s Services march break event. She will be one of the many vendors at what she described as an “interactive children’s event.” It’s free to enter and happening from 11 AM until 2 PM. She also has a book reading on the 20th at the Hastings Highlands Public Library and will be taking part in Maynooth Public School’s pink day on April 9th.
You can buy the book by visiting Dawn’s website or on Amazon.