Beth Pendergrass, from
New Mexico in the US, takes funny pictures of herself dressed as pop culture characters
from famous pictures and movies and posts it on Instagram.
When a friend of Beth’s
cut her hair into a pixie cut for chemotherapy, she noted Beth resembled Julie
Andrews’ character from the Sound of Music.
“A friend told me I
looked like Fräulein Maria from Sound of Music,” Beth told CBS
News. "So as a joke, I took a picture of myself, placed it next
to a picture of Maria from Sound of Music and sent it to my friend."
The comparison sparked
Beth, who has more than 1 200 followers on Instagram, to start dressing up as
iconic people, both real and fictional.
“Through research, I
had learned that a number of individuals impacted by cancer recommended keeping
a journal.
“I knew I didn’t want
to keep just any journal. I wanted a clever way to document my journey – to
take a challenging experience and turn it into something positive, and this was
it,” she says.
“My pictures keep me
focused on the positive. They give me an outlet to share my experiences and
even to work through the emotions that come with a cancer diagnosis.”
Beth – whose dress-ups
include the likes of Miss Piggy, Barbara Streisand and David Bowie – has had
surgery to remove the lump in her breast and will soon start radiation therapy,
ABC
News reports.
“The pictures and words
I write are reminders to me,” Beth says. “I’ll be able to look back on them and
remember that I’m a strong person – I’m a survivor and a fighter.