an uncommon conversation

I didn't know what to expect, tbh. But I knew that there was something about Kat's project that appealed to me. I've always had a strange relationship with noses. Growing up estranged from my relatives meant I didn't have anyone to see my nose mirrored by. And my Mom had told me I had an ugly nose "like them". There are more reasons that noses got extra negative attention in my "tribe" but those are stories for another time. Since I've spent a lot of my life unlearning beliefs about my features and my identity, this was very personal to me. 

I like my nose now... sort of. This event felt like a chance to confront the "sort of" so I invited my Mom and my Brother to attend with me. I really enjoyed the collaborative aspect in the writing of the scripts and I loved being encouraged to look at the breath, sense of smell, and physical aspect of the nose as beautiful in their own right. I had never considered how incredibly powerful the nose actually is. And it was deeply moving and healing to have that brought to my awareness. I loved having the opportunity to have such an uncommon conversation. 

I'm looking forward to having more experiences like this. Thank you, Kat, for the Legend of the Nose Tree.

- Jess Anton, Puppening Attendee

photo by Brandon Alcantara