Doing something wrong meant that I had not pleased the person or people in charge. It also meant that what I thought, what I felt, and what I needed or desired was of little or no consequence. As I grew older, more creative, and increasingly independent, there were many situations when I acted out in unmistakable defiance of the authority figures in my life. In each and every instance when I attempted to assert my thoughts or my voice, I was corrected, punished, or both.