Beauty in Imperfection

[Ms. Toad]

I've posted this before in the Photography forum. This image has been accepted into the juried student art show which will run from tomorrow through March 1. (I submitted 3 photographs; this one (my favorite) was accepted. It is my first ever self-portrait. I have sarcoma (a rare cancer). I have shared the image fairly widely. I have heard from a number of people who struggle with their body image, in the wake of scars left by cancer treatment, that seeing the scar as part of a beautiful image has been helpful.)

Image Description: The black-and-white image is of an woman sitting at an table on her deck cradling a bouquet of roses which obscure her face. From her hands you can tell she is older. She has a significant scar on her right arm from removal of a sarcoma (cancer). The bouquet of roses she cradles are wilted and dried.