Photo by whatmegsaid/ Feature photo by bonjourpeewee

Frank Warren’s Post Secret phenomena started in 2003, with a trip to Paris and a dream. I mean a real dream – he bought some postcards and later dreamt about them being written with cryptic messages, like “unrecognized evidence, from forgotten journeys, unknowingly rediscovered.”

Warren then went on to start the “reluctant oracle” project, pieces of art with messages tucked into bottles and set adrift on Maryland’s Clopper Lake. The last message, “You will find your answers in the secrets of others,” inspired Post Secret.

With Post Secret, people send Warren their deepest, darkest secrets in the form of anonymous postcard art. Sometimes they’re quirky and funny, but often they’re heartbreaking and shocking. Each one is a unique glimpse into the private world of somebody else, the most intimate details of our lives revealed.

Now We Want to See Yours

The response to Post Secret was (and still is) enormous, sparking several book compilations and inspiring others to participate in their own way. Now I’m asking you to open up to me.

Photo by whatmegsaid

Send me your work of art, complete with a secret, and it’ll be published in a photo essay. It can be a digitally altered image or a scanned one, I’m giving you complete artistic license to share with us at Matador Network a private part of your life.

Here’s how you do it anonymously:

1. Go to Sendspace.com
2. Upload the image
3. In the description field, enter Post Secret
4. For recipient’s email, enter candice@matadornetwork.com
5. For your email, enter candice@matadornetwork.com

I will be notified of the image, and then sent a link for access. I will never need to know who sent the image, so your secret is safe with me.

Due Date: Keep them coming, we’ll do more than one feature.

Community Connection

Learn how to send postcards from your iPhone, or learn how to write a letter instead.

So I began documenting my life with photos this past Saturday. Since then, I’ve had some really lovely, relaxing days, but I can’t say anything of huge import and significance happened. We didn’t hike the Incan trials of Peru. There were no death defying adventure treks. The best moment of my weekend involved a little yoga and a really excellent cup of coffee while swinging in the hammock.

But isn’t that what so much of our lives tend to be? We have our highs and lows, but in between, there are what I like to call the ordinary everyday joys.

I’ll Show You A Couple of Mine

I bought this pepper plant at the Salta municipal market about two months ago. Until recently, I’d always lived in apartments and small spaces, so the idea of growing a plant and actually watch it sprout something edible amazes me.

The bushy plant behind the pepper is thyme. I plucked some leaves from it to use in a pinto I made for lunch.

Silly little finger puppet. We had Couchsurfers from Portugal staying with us this weekend. They made these puppets with Lila — my five year old — while I chopped the garlic and thyme. The puppet was a decoration for a birthday present. We went to three, yes, three little girls’ birthday parties this weekend.

Now Show Us Yours

We here at Matador Life want to know more about what happens day-to-day in the lives of our readers and our community, so we’re calling for Matadorians to send in photos and share with us the things — big or small — that are important to you. We’ll post our favorites here on Matador Life.

How To Submit: Choose a photo and email your image to leigh@matadornetwork. Your photo should be at least 1000 pixels at its largest dimension. Tell us a little about the day it was taken. Please use This Is What I Did Today! in your subject line.

Also include: Your Matador ID name and personal website.

Due Date: Ongoing project. Keep ‘em coming.

COMMUNITY CONNECTION:

Photo by Zawezome

Relate Magazine is developing an e-Book series and wants to include your stories, thoughts, advice and ideas. The first issue focuses on body image and self esteem.

They’re particularly interested in articles dealing with

For more information, check out the Relate e-Book Call For Submissions Guidelines.

Email submissions to mary@relatemag.com with the story attached in the body or attach it as a Word document. You can also choose to remain anonymous.

Deadline is February 26, 2010.

Happy writing!

Community Connection

Need inspiration? Try some travel related reading.

It’s incredible how a few kind words go such a long way. These creative notes left in random places show just how simple it is to make someone’s day.

Notes enroute

Photo by JoAnna Haugen

Photo by JoAnna Haugen

JoAnna combined her passion for travel with Operation Beautiful to spread the word while on the road. The first note was left on the tray tables in row 12 of Alaska Airlines flight 610 from Las Vegas to Seattle, while the second note was left on a bathroom door in Seattle’s Sea-Tac airport.

Dance to feel beautiful

Photo by Karin Norgard

Karin Norgard, a dance teacher in Alaska, shares her thoughts on the project:

I love dance because it makes people feel more confident about, expressive with, and connected to their bodies. So when I heard about Operation Beautiful, I immediately posted a note to my dance students at the health club in Anchorage, Alaska, where I teach. Its message not only builds up men and women who may feel self-conscious as they learn and start to open up, it reminds me why I love dancing and teaching my passion to others. It has also given me an extra dose of inspiration when writing articles on dance for my website, Joy in Motion. The response I get from a simple post-it note and from my articles is one and the same: people are excited about learning to love their bodies as well as their spirits.

Reaching out to all generations

Photo submitted by Ann Schroeder

Ann Schroeder of Relate Magazine, an online publication dedicated to inspiring teens to follow their dreams with confidence, wrote us to say the magazine had recently partnered with Caitlin and Operation Beautiful to reach the Relate audience. She writes: “The most memorable and surprising submissions were from the age groups which submitted. We had women from their offices submitting as well as teens submitting. It was a great feeling to see these notes start flooding in.”

The note above, posted to a co-worker’s computer screen, was submitted by a woman working in an office in St. Louis.

Dare to be humiliated

Photo by Joannaline C. Young

Joannaline, a MatadorU student, was so inspired by the Operation Beautiful project that she also wrote about it at WorldNewsVine. She posted seven post-its in seven different magazines, using Spanish to appeal to a wider audience. She writes: “I looked around me about every 2 seconds to make sure no one knew what I was doing. I pretended to take out a book from the shelf as people walked by. At every snapshot, I felt a rush of adrenaline immediately followed by a sense of triumph.” She concluded the possibility of humiliation was definitely worth it.

Starting with the kids

Photo by Debbie Oser

Debbie Oser is a “mompreneur” raising two boys, ages five and eight. Her company, Keeping it Positive, sells Positive Affirmation products. She writes: “I started the business after seeing how Positive Affirmations changed our sons’ attitude and behavior to be more self-assured and confident. I knew that I wanted to help spread this confidence to as many children and adults as I could.”

Debbie posted her note in the girls bathroom of her son’s elementary school in North Wales, PA.

Musical inspiration

Photo by JeBron

Singer/songwriter JeBron left this note in his home in Atlanta, Georgia, for a loved one to find. He says, ”When I placed this post-it, I was thinking to myself, what could I do to make a woman feel beautiful?”

Those tough decisions

Photo by Sarah Nelson

Sarah describes this note posted in Austin, Texas, as “decision making made beautiful.”

Thanks everyone, for your creative contributions!

COMMUNITY CONNECTION:

How do you help reinforce positive body images? Share your comments below.

Photos courtesy of Operation Beautiful.

  
Already a strong advocate for ending the negative buzz about obesity, or “Fat Talk,” Caitlin was inspired by Gives Me Hope – a site where users can share stories of random acts of kindness – to embark on her own mission to change the world’s perception of beauty. Operation Beautiful was born.
 
The rules are simple: 1) write something motivational on a piece of paper, stick it in a public place (like a bathroom mirror), and 2) include the website address to share the love.

Sceptical that such a simple act of kindness can positively affect someone? The following are just two examples of the many comments from the mission page:
 

I went into the bathroom today and saw a stick note: “You are beautiful the way you are. operationbeautiful.com.” I smiled and pulled out a camera. Later, I heard some girls in class describe it as “cute” and one went and pulled it down to keep. It was very encouraging.

im only a kid BUT I LOVE THIS IDEA! i want to do it at school and everywhere! (i’m 12) YOU ARE AWESOME!!!!!!

Chatting with Caitlin via email, I asked whether she was surprised about the success of her project and the willingness of people to participate. Here’s what she said:
 

“Operation Beautiful started on a whim.  I was having a bad day, and I wanted to do something nice for someone else, and I know that random acts of kindness make me feel good!  I wrote the words “You are beautiful” on a piece of paper, stuck it to a mirror, took a picture, and asked the readers of my personal blog to participate.  At the time, I never knew how huge Operation Beautiful would become, but in hindsight, I am not surprised.”

Submission Guidelines:

Readers, get out there and start reversing negative body images and attitudes. Write something motivational on a piece of paper, include the web address operationbeautiful.com, and stick it in a place where someone else is sure to find it, like a co-worker’s desk or inside a gym locker.

Bonus points for Creativity!

Then take a photograph of your creation and attach it in an email to candice@matadornetwork.com or leigh@matadornetwork.com with the subject line “Operation Beautiful.”

We’ll select our favorites to share on Matador Life.

Be sure to include: information about where you left your post it (ie city, town, country, specific location). Optional to include: any stories you’d like to share about why you chose to post where you did or any reactions to it. You can remain anonymous but if you’d like to include your personal blog or webpage, let us know..

COMMUNITY CONNECTION