When I was 6 years old, I sang the theme song for the little kids television show "Wonder Pets!"
Yes that was me. No I am not lying.
That's what I used to say when telling people that I voiced the theme song for the TV show. While it might seem cool to you, for me it's a little embarrassing. Knowing that my english professor sings along to the song with her children is not the worst thing in the world, but being asked to sing it for her in front of the entire class is. I stopped telling people for a while because in middle school I was called a liar, and my classmates didn't believe me. I was constantly insulted and told that I was just trying to get attention. I got so fed up one day I brought in one of my royalty check as proof. I was told it was a fake. That's when I realized that my favorite thing about myself, my icebreaker go to, may not be all it's cracked up to be.
My teachers thought I had an overly active imagination, my classmates thought I was an attention seeking liar. I couldn't understand why. I was the voice of the Wonder Pets theme song. I was. Why would I lie about that?
I didn't really understand why until I got to high school and people started to believe me. Needless to say, in middle school I was definitely not one of the "popular kids." I was awkward and chubby, and didn't have too many friends. My classmates must have thought "Kate couldn't possibly be a Wonder Pet, she's too ugly or weird." My classmates didn't believe me, not because I had a track record for lying, but because they just didn't like me. Before high school I decided I would not repeat my middle school years. I was going to be liked. And to my surprise, I was. I started dating my boyfriend the second month of freshman year, and quickly became the "couple goals" of our school. In middle school everyone knew me because I was the girl they could make fun of. In high school they knew me because they wanted to. So I told my boyfriend about my Wonder Pets days. He believed me. I told my group of friends. They believed me. Soon word spread around school and soon the questions came back. This time my answers were different though.
Yes that was me. No I will not sing it in the middle of class. Please don't play the song- oh you found it on YouTube that's great please stop that. And yes, the phone IS in fact ringing.
I was not the girl who had to prove myself anymore. I was the girl who sang the Wonder Pets theme song. I started telling people again. I was no longer ashamed of my go-to ice breaker, I was proud of it. My middle school classmates tried to bury my favorite fact, tried to invalidate it. But in high school, it was celebrated. I am proud to be a Wonder Pet. I am proud to bring joy to the lives on little children every time they hear my voice on the TV. For a while I forgot that my days as a Wonder Pet are not something to be ashamed of. Now I say it proudly as my fun fact on the first day of college classes. I lip sync the song for my friends. I am no longer afraid of my favorite fact because it is part of who I am. For a while I let bullies take it away from me, but never again.
If you have something that you love about yourself, but you've been made fun of for it, or are self conscious about it, don't stop talking about it. Don't hide from the things that you love. Are you a girl that absolutely loves to code? You do you girl! Do all your friends play sports but you really just want to be in show choir? Belt those tune! Don't dull your shine to please someone else. Don't let anyone take away what is unique about you. I did for a long time. But take it from a Wonder Pet, the phone is ringing. Pick it up. Tell whoever it is on the other line that no one else can define you. Do the thing you love. Be amazing regardless of what anyone else thinks. Don't hide what is so cool about yourself.
