Jessica's "Daily Affirmation"

Jessica has a day where she's feeling ... really good about her life. (December 2001)

++++FAQ for this video ++++
Q: How old was Jess at the time of the video?
A: She'd turned 4 about 6 weeks before the video was shot.

Q: How old is she now?
A: Depends on when you're reading this, but she was born in late October of 1997.

Q: What does she say at the beginning?
A: Though some claim they hear the word "assert" - as in assertive - she's actually saying I can be a "shark" - but it sounds like "sark" because she was incapable of making "sh" sounds at this time.

Q: Are you sure she's not saying "I can be a SARK?" Her daily affirmations are consistent with the teachings of the author SARK.
A: This is an interesting coincidence, but a coincidence nonetheless.

Q: Does she say, "I like my 'elephants'?"
A: More than one person has thought that, but she's actually saying I like my "Allisons." Allison is her aunt.

Q: Does Jess have more than one mom? She says I like my "moms."
A: No, she just has one mom and one dad (me.) For some reason she was "pluralizing" several things in her "like list." That's why she says "Allisons" and "cousins" (she only has one.)

Q: What does she say at the 22 second mark?
A: I really don't know, though I do have a theory now: this video was taken right around Christmas-time, and it ALMOST sounds like she's saying "I like my presents." So that's what I think it is - but I could be wrong.

Q: Did she do this affirmation every day?
A. Yes, until the age of seven. ... Just kidding. :-) I think this was a day when the video camera was out, so there was an element of "putting on a show" - but Jessica still meant every word. Though she may have been hamming it up a bit, she was sincere in the things she was saying.

Q: Did you teach her that she could "anything better than anyone?" Isn't that a little wrong?
A: Some people have had an issue with her saying this, but it's not something that we taught her. And I've never seen her (even all these years later) say anything like this to anyone. I suspect it was probably the expression of some inner confidence that she just happened to express outwardly on this one particular day.

VIDEO MILESTONES (for the inquiries I've received):
- 6/16/09: video is uploaded
- 5/1/10: less than 5,000 views
- 5/21/10: views hit 1,000,000
- 5/26/10: views hit 2,000,000
- 6/16/10: views hit 3,000,000
- 8/20/10: views hit 4,000,000
- 10/15/10: views hit 5,000,000
- 12/22/10: views hit 6,000,000
- 2/24/11: views hit 7,000,000
- 6/20/11: views hit 8,000,000

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Look, I can be a shark.

Now my whole house is great.

I can do anything good.

I like my school.

I like anything.

I like my dad.

I like my cousins.

I like my aunts.

I like my Allisons.

I like my moms.

I like my sisters.

[ BABY CRYING ]

I like my dads.

I like my sisters.

I like my hair.

I like my haircuts.

I like my pajamas.

I like my stuff.

I like my rooms.

I like my whole house!

My whole house is great.

I can do anything good.

Yeah yeah yeah yeah yeah.

I can do anything good.

Better than anyone,
better than anyone.