Walking into the office confidently, I braced myself for a tirade of comments, such as, “Oh my word! Look at Tamara, what on earth is she thinking?” or worse, “I did not know that Tamara looked like that… seriously? Get it together, girl; this is the 21st century!” But instead, a plethora of compliments came rushing over to me.

“You look fantastic! Are you wearing a new brand? It’s so fresh; the color really matches your skin!” Ironic, I thought, grinning inside. Laughing, I answered, “It should; it is my skin,” grinning at the surprised faces looking at me in awe.

The office bustled with whispers and stares as I carried on with my day, sitting down at my desk. “Looking good, Tamara,” said Larry, my boss, totally throwing me off balance as he usually didn’t give me the time of day. Wow! If I had known this earlier, I would have made the necessary changes ages ago! I knew what I had to do, as I thought about Grandma Helena…

The excited thrill of my epiphany exhilarated me to the point that I couldn’t wait for the day to end!

Rushing home, I excitedly threw open the front door, smiling from ear to ear. Yeehaw! Let’s do this!

In the bedroom, I took off my coat, throwing my bag on the bed, and went to my Grandma Helena’s photo and smiled. “Thank you,” I whispered.

Heading into the kitchen, I made a cup of coffee and looked at my recipe books. That’s when the idea truly began to take form.

Sitting at the kitchen table, notepad and pen poised for a long night ahead, filter coffee brewing as my consistent, loyal companion. With my thoughts racing, I began writing, jumping to the bookshelf and back, eating, chewing, thinking, writing. The words flowed easily and swiftly, as if they were just waiting to come to life! The paper seemed to gleam as I kept on writing, thoroughly enjoying every moment of it.

Once the last sentence was complete, I sat back exhausted and overwhelmed but in a comforting, liberating way that made me feel… complete.

I looked down at my notes spread all over the kitchen table and carefully started to put them in order. I hadn’t realized that with my “all-night jaunt,” I had written over 60 pages—a myriad of words played and danced on the pages, and once they had settled down, I placed the last crisp white paper on top of the pile.

Looking at the blank page, I picked up my pen and wrote:

“Helena’s Secret to Natural Beauty,” written by Tamara Savoy.

“A guide to embracing and loving your natural self with nature’s beauty secrets.”

Tell us: Tamara’s colleagues’ reactions differ from what she expected. What does this suggest about the assumptions we make regarding others’ perceptions?