Exposed

Nicole Johnson recalls an unusually funny experience during a virtual meeting, and explores the softer side of being exposed.  

If you grew up with Sesame Street, you may remember the skit where four kids were shown on screen in Brady Bunch boxes. Three of the kids were doing similar things, and one was clearly an outlier. The catchy little ditty that accompanied the challenge always seems to surface for me when I’m on a virtual meeting taking stock of my fellow participants. Never before however, have I noticed a kid doing his own thing quite like I did on a recent training call with twenty or so other people, none of whom I knew.

The material was dry at best, so I started cycling through the Brady Bunch boxes when one immediately caught my attention. It took a minute for my brain to reconcile what I was seeing, but it quickly became clear I was watching this man brush his teeth.

“Well, that’s odd,” I thought to myself and then realized he was operating under the sorely misdirected assumption that his camera was off. He would bend over the sink to spit and then stand back up and glance at his phone to keep an eye on the presentation. The show ramped up rather quickly when he pulled his shirt off, then stood over his phone for a final check before walking off to what I could only assume was the shower. Sure enough, several minutes later, he was on screen again, this time with wet hair and towel (thankfully) tied around his midsection. He grabbed his phone and brought us all with him as he walked to the next room and then strategically placed his phone where he could watch the presentation as he got dressed.

Exposed: vulnerable, susceptible, laid bare, wide open.

For the most part, feeling exposed is not a comfortable thing. The age of social media has left far too many addicted to being noticed — but being noticed and being exposed are two entirely different realities. In biblical terms, exposure refers to “the act of revealing or uncovering something that was previously hidden.” Think Adam and his sudden new use of the fig leaf. We humans always want to put our best face forward. We live with the hope that others will notice our strengths and that somehow we will succeed in keeping our vulnerabilities off screen.

The Beauty in Being Exposed

Exposure doesn’t always refer to something negative, however. As only He can do, God carefully uses opportunities to expose or bring forward qualities in us that might otherwise lie dormant. The most beautiful exposition, in my experience, is the bringing forth of a woman’s heart through the gift of motherhood.

My children are, quite literally, the exposition of my soul. They are my heart laid bare. Never have I felt more vulnerable to heartbreak or more susceptible to failure. The journey of motherhood has born within me a love that knows no limits and an emptying of myself that has somehow left me more fulfilled than I ever dared desire.

Motherhood has exposed many truths I’d otherwise choose to keep hidden. I’m not the nicest person when operating on little sleep. I can be impatient and selfish and am nearly always afraid. I’m stubborn and entirely too sensitive. I have unfair expectations, am addicted to all things neat and tidy, and am terrified of not being in control.

I’m also really good at loving. I’m not afraid to love big and deep. I can admit when I’m wrong and ask for forgiveness when I’ve been impatient or held my children to unfair expectations. I can laugh at myself, and often do. I live in gratitude for — everything. I am open to learning and do my best to absorb the lessons in each day through every encounter.

God Uses Our Children to Form Us

Twenty-four years into this role, it is clear I am the woman I am today because of my children. Only through the blessing of motherhood has God brought forth the woman He created me to be. In my children I found every reason to be patient, to sacrifice my own needs for the benefit of theirs. The unique and individual needs of each one of my children demand that I ignore what all the other kids are doing and do what I — and only I — can do for them. I was chosen to be theirs and they were chosen to be mine. I will never be deserving, and I will never be able to love them adequately.

A few months ago, I became a grandmother, and my heart stretched to new proportions. There is something entirely disarming and wholly miraculous about loving the precious life of your child’s child. My love for this tiny being is layered. I love her all on her own and I love her in and through my love for my son and daughter-in-law. The joy of seeing each of them fully exposed in their new roles as parents is simply awesome.

This journey.

It just keeps getting better.

Share your thoughts with the Catholic Mom community! You'll find the comment box below the author's bio and list of recommended articles.

Copyright 2026 Nicole Johnson
Images: Canva