Does every female have body issues?
Kid 3 (she’s 7) told me the other day that she “hates the blubber” on her thighs. She’s SEVEN. She asked me how to get rid of it. I told her that what she was feeling was her muscle at rest. She didn’t buy it. I told her to flex it. Hey, look! It went solid!
What do we think we should look like, anyway? Supermodels? Not likely, I’m afraid. Is there any way for the girls in our house to be satisfied that we have nice faces, straight teeth, and some of us, good hair? Do we have to be displeased with something all the time? (Apparently, yes.)
Nobody is perfectly happy with herself, I’m convinced. If she’s super smart, she thinks she’s not coordinated enough. If she’s super athletic, she’s afraid she hasn’t got any “real” talents. If she’s very kind, she’s worried that people are noticing her bad skin. If she’s skinny, she feels too skinny. If she’s strong, she feels too big. If her teeth are straight, she hates her big nose. If she’s tall, she wants to be petite. If she’s short, she hates being small. I her hair is straight, she wants curly. If it’s curly, only straight will do.
Why? Why do we do this to ourselves? We. As in me, too. And I’m old. I’ve been out of school for more of my life than I was in it. Nobody else is really looking and thinking and saying what I obsessively think they are. I need to be okay enough for me. And about two out of three days, I am. I am okay. I have hips, and strong legs that will never, ever wear certain things (like skinny jeans or shorts in general). I have no chest. Well, if I had one, I’d look bigger all over, right? I have good skin. I only have to shave my legs once a week, and that’s in the summer. Most of the things I dislike about my body are things I should be in control of (the tricep jiggle and the tummy bulge) if I choose to take the steps necessary (weight lifting and sugar abstinence).
So I’m going to find a thing to like in the mirror every day. (Did I mention that I like my eyelashes?) I’m going to accept compliments when they’re given, with a gracious “Thank you” and nothing else. No qualifying. No rejecting. I am going to practice sincere complimenting. And I will take responsibility for my food and exercise business.
I will never look like a model. I will never need to. Someone needs to be this shape, why not me?
(3) Comments for this blog
Great post!
I love my eyelashes too.
Becca,
Can I be your next-door neighbor? We can go on walks in the mornings and you can inspire me with your words and example 🙂 Your blog is always a pick-me-up.
…I love my eyelashes…mostly because I only have about three on each eye (so they need all the love they can get :)) My boys, on the other hand, have thick full sets (what’s the deal with that?!)
Great insights! I have been having fun reading your latest blogging and thinking about what a slacker I am for never blogging and never telling you how FABULOUS your book is. I loved it! I have been recommending it to all who are literate!