How to Grow Up Weird

Lessons from wild and wonderful women

Growing up in Utah came with the inherent pressure of being perfect. You had to wear the proper clothing, behave the proper way … the culture was all about following the rules and staying within the lines. But I was lucky: My mother and grandmothers taught us to break the rules a bit. As ladies, we were encouraged to think independently, and most importantly, be weird and a little bit wild. That is how I was taught to be wonderful. 

My mother always had funny stories, silly faces, and inspiration to share. She taught me that the weirder you were, the funnier and more enjoyable life was. She still brings humor and levity to all of life’s challenges and celebrations: telling stories, making the ugliest faces possible for a laugh, playing games, and sharing jokes. 

Both of my grandmothers were pioneers in their own right. My paternal grandmother, Anneliese Rosa Eibisch Burleigh, left Germany at the age of 21 in 1947 to marry the love of her life, Ivan Stanley Burleigh. My grandfather was a Master Sergeant in the U.S. Army during World War II, and my grandmother followed him across the world to Evanston, Wyoming. She had her own thoughts, her own dreams, and more courage than any other woman I have ever met. Her stories of resilience and perseverance during the war remind me to this day that I am capable of anything. She was unapologetic about what she wanted, and she would do anything to have it. 

My maternal grandmother, Ruth Black Larsen Banks, started her own business, a hair salon, at 16 years old. For someone born in the 1910s, this was radical. What was even more radical—and memorable—to me was the way she lived her life to her own accord. She taught me the lesson of duality: two opposite expressions existing at once within ourselves. She grew up as a Latter-Day Saint, rooted in tradition, modesty, structure, and strong religious values. Yet somehow, she embodied a completely different kind of freedom in her everyday presence. She was expressive, comfortable in her own skin, and quietly rebellious in the most joyful way. 

One of the most telling examples was how she’d stroll from the bathroom to her bedroom completely naked without a second thought. She would just say, “Oops, you caught me naked!” She celebrated womanhood naturally and unapologetically. She taught me that dignity doesn’t come from hiding yourself; it comes from being at ease with who you are. 

Wild, weird, and wonderful are adjectives I would consider a compliment, and I give credit to the women in my life for teaching me to accept those traits. I am thrilled that is the theme of this issue.

I hope you feel more inspired to bring out the wild, weird, and wonderful side of yourself and to share it as well. 

Stay weird, 

McKenzie Burleigh

Photo by Sean Murphy