When I was just barely into my teens, I went through a period of time when I wanted to be someone else. I didn't like the way I looked. I was self-conscious about the spaces in my teeth. I hated that the veins in my hands stuck out. I wanted to be just like my friend, Marilyn. She was perfect — in everything — and, the boys liked her. I used to stand in front of the mirror and practice smiling like Marilyn. For a while, I dressed like she dressed, walked like she walked, and laughed like she laughed. But, I couldn't pull it off. I couldn't be Marilyn. I was still me. And the boys still liked her better.

My lack of self-confidence wasn't helped very much by my high school band director. I can still remember the look on his face every time we got to a place in the music where I had a bassoo…