Measuring

My self worth with a contest...
I've got to stop doing that.
I know it's not right. I know I am a good scrapbooker. Yet when I heard that all the Hall of Fame winners have been called, I was (and still am, frankly) upset.

I look at my work. It's awesome. Not a single layout in my whole entry bugs me. They are all fantastic. I love what I did. I kicked my art up several notches. I feel like I am at the top of the heap. Everyone who saw my layouts said the same thing.
"These are amazing!"
"Your best ever! I can't believe how great these are!"
"You're a shoe-in!"
And I believed them.
Were they just being nice? Trying to make me feel good? Trying to butter me up? I don't get it.

This contest is considered, in the scrapbooking community, the pinnacle of a scrapper's career. Once you make Hall of Fame, you have arrived. Manufacturers come to your door wanting you to do stuff for them and get paid. People send you places. You get book deals. You get serious recognition. That's why I wanted it. I knew the opportunities that awaited the winners of the contest. I wanted to be one of them. I reeeeeeeally wanted it.

I will be fine in a few days. But for now I need to be pissy about this.