Tuesday, March 6, 2012

I'm Passionate about Health

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Healthy Inside-Out


I used to be overweight as a child. My mother told me to lose weight and used to put a big belt around my waist. She made me feel fat and ugly. My older sister used to bully me and made me cry. My family called me "Fat Girl" and others followed suit. That became a nickname that I hated, but I didn't say anything because I was "shy". I went on an extreme exercise and diet in high school and became anorexic at age 17. I know that words like actions have the power to hurt and to heal.      

Story title: Ugly Duckling 2.0
This is a moderm re-telling of the classic fairy tale with a twist. Ugly/ Beauty has to overcome bullying and teasing because of her big fat appearance to realize that she is and has always been a beautiful swan. This is a story about a girl who used to think that she was not good enough and didn't deserve to be loved, but with the help of her coach, Ugly empowers herself to transform into a new life as a swan.

Characters:
Ugly/ Beauty – Main character or heroine who is bullied and teased for her big, fat appearance
Eva – Her mom who tells her to lose some weight
Don – Her dad who is too busy to notice what is going on
Amy and Becky– Her two sisters
Mabel, Jenny – Her friends in school
Karen Swan - Her coach

Locations: At a small family farm in Hong Kong and a bigger farm near Los Angeles.

Plot: The heroine or main character has to overcome bullying, obstacles, villains to regain her real self. This is a story of transformation. Ugly loves to eat and is bigger than her older sister. Eva is really concerned about appearances and beauty. She has gained weight over time with three children and believes that being thin is beautiful. Eva compares Ugly to Amy who is thin and wants Ugly to be like her first daughter. As a mother, she can't accept Ugly for who she is. Eva starts calling her second daughter "Fat Girl". Amy bullies Ugly because she is an easy target. They all call Ugly “Fat Girl”, a nickname that she hates. Yet Ugly is too shy to express her feelings or say anything. She feels stupid and ugly. "If I lose weight, then they'll love me." Yet Ugly loves to eat and doesn't want to give up ice cream (her favorite treat). She battles with her self-image and self-worth as she deals with the teasing. Her friends in school accept her and call her by her real name. Ugly relies on them but loses them when her father moves the family to America. Her sisters adjust to the change and make new friends easily, but Ugly doesn't want to be in America. People make fun of her accent and some girls call her a "Chink". It's the first time that Ugly encounters racism. She doesn't like to be Chinese and feels that being American means fitting into the new culture and speaking English without an accent. Ugly tries hard to fit in but feels like a fish out of water. Eventually, she learns to love and accept herself just the way she is and realize an important fact. Being true to her dream and passion is more crucial than pleasing others. Ugly finds freedom and power with the help of her coach, Karen Swan who sees the swan in her before Ugly did. As a swan, Beauty is writing a book to empower other girls to see the beauty inside themselves and in others.   

Ingrid Cheng
Author of an upcoming book and active blogger. Certified Yoga Teacher and Founder of Fit-Twist. Former organizer of Yoga, Holistic Health, Fit-Twist Meetups, Event Planner and Promoter. Founder of Holistic Health Club, LLC and Attune Yoga in May 2009. Former grade-school teacher and part-time tutor. Extensive experience with children as a volunteer for non-profits that serve children.

Skills: Blogging, Social Media Marketing, bilingual Chinese (Cantonese), computer proficient. Social Networking experience, Microsoft Office, Email, Internet savvy, people-person.

Member of: CEO Space, Cambridge Who's Who, Culver City Woman's Club, Green Chamber of Commerce, Holistic Chamber of Commerce and West L.A. Chamber of Commerce.
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