Insecurity is not permanent

July 21, 2010

“Im not beautiful.”
“You’re really not that pretty.”
“Am I worthy of anything?”

Sometimes this is what I tell myself. Why? Because sometimes when I look at myself in the mirror I feel ashamed, embarrassed, repulsed, and ugly. So, I guess you can say I’m insecure, but isn’t everyone? It doesn’t seem that way all the time. At times it feels as if I’m the only one who feels ashamed.

Now, it’s not just my face that makes me feel insecure. It’s my body too. I think that’s my main reason for feeling insecure. That’s the reason I’m repulsed at times.

I’m not stick skinny by any means, but I’m not overweight either. I guess that means I’m . . . average? I look at myself in the mirror and say, “Yeah, it would be good for me to lose a couple extra pounds. Then I’ll be perfect.”

Ah. There’s that word: Perfect. Well, I don’t use that word anymore because now I know, NOTHING and NO ONE is perfect. No matter what you think. Sure, things can be perfectly imperfect, but not perfect.

I have met some amazing people in the past year. Yes, year. They have helped me boost my confidence level up a tiny bit. They have made me learn what true beauty is. Do you know what true beauty is?

It’s where you’re comfortable with who you are and don’t let what others say change your view of yourself. It’s when you know nothing is perfect, that you just need to be enough for yourself and know that no matter what, you are beautiful. All your imperfections are what make you perfectly imperfect.

The media makes you think that being skinny, tan, flawless, and tall is what makes you beautiful and that it is the ONLY beautiful.

It’s not.

I am slowly, but surely becoming happy with myself. I am noticing that I am beautiful, that I do have a beautiful shape and face. I’m beautiful all over.

And so are you. YOU have beauty like no one else does. YOU have a smile that no one else can smile. YOU have a voice that no one else can speak. And YOU have a life that no one else can live except yourself.

So, next time you look in the mirror tell yourself, “I am beautiful and that is not a lie.”

What I’m trying to say is, insecurity doesn’t last. It’s not permanent. Sure every now and again you will feel insecure, but that’s human. Just don’t feel that way all the time. You will miss out on so much in life if you let insecurity get to you.

Next time you go to the beach, don’t look at your body in the mirror and point out things on your body that are ‘ugly’. Just slap on that bathing suit and go.

Embrace your beauty and know there is one thing in the world that everyone is born with: Beauty.

Don’t you know your beautiful?

Mirror Mirror, Go Away!

July 19, 2010

How someone sees you, or how you see yourself can be looked at in many different ways. Self image can mean how other people see your personality, your looks, how you see yourself on the inside, etc. Or, it can mean the person you see when you look in the mirror.

For some people, the mirror is their best friend. Looking beautiful isn’t a problem, because they have that long perfect hair and the nice body. For others, it’s their worst enemy. You hear about girls (and boys) who struggle with eating disorders, who cry over the fact that they just don’t look “normal”. But what is normal? In a simple definition, normal basically means “sane”. It means you’re accepted by society, to conform with an accepted standard.

To me, “normal” is one big insult. It’s been that way my whole life. I’ve never conformed, to anything really. That’s why I’m here to tell you that it’s okay. You don’t have to look like a Barbie doll. You don’t have to wear what the pretty girls in school are wearing. It’s okay if you have pimples, and you don’t have to be 90 pounds, either.

Don’t ever let someone make you think that you’re less of a person because of the way they view you. Don’t ever let anyone force you to change the way you are because they want it that way. That’s simply not right.

If you’re going to change who you are, make sure it’s for you. Not the mean girl or boy taunting you, (who won’t mean anything after school is done anyway).

This problem of people thinking they aren’t good enough because of looks . . . NEVER stops. And somehow, it always seems to take a suicide or a tragic happening to realize this.

So, make this one of your goals. If you’re the one doing the tormenting, stop, and think about what might happen if you take it too far. If you’re the other team, walk with your head held high and let the world know that you’re not perfect, but you’re proud to be who you are.

“I do not need anyone’s permission to be my true self.”
- Jonathan Lockwood Huie

Remember, you have one life. ONE chance to be your true self. Don’t waste it on the people who don’t give you anything but words that don’t matter.

Thank you,
Clarisse

Everything in Moderation

July 16, 2010

I flopped on the couch, completely stuffed. I had definitely eaten too much. There was a wide variety of foods at the picnic, but I just ate more and more potato salad until I didn’t have room for anything else.

I thought back a while to before lunch. I remembered someone saying, “It’s healthier to eat in moderation.” and someone else replying, “Auntie, you say that about everything. What about life?” and “Auntie” replied, “What would the world be if everyone lived forever? Sad. Life wouldn’t be precious anymore. Nothing could make us happy. Everything needs moderation.”

Everything in moderation. This quote, to me, seems it could make sense with anything. Name something, and I can find a reason it needs moderation. For example, cars. Cars need to be used in moderation to reduce our pollution. Animals. If there are too many of a certain animal, the whole food chain can be thrown out of balance. Education. One needs to have a healthy balance of learning, working, and even having fun.

Throughout the endeavor of matching any object or action with moderation, there was only one that really stumped me. Love. Of course you can think of it logically, like with education, balancing time with the ones you love and with other activities. But, what is logical about love, truly? You can’t put it on a schedule and balance it with the rest of your life. You can’t pass up a chance to love your family because you’re going to be late for soccer practice. And, mainly, even if you do try to lay down a schedule of time to spend with those you love, you may still be thinking about them when you’re doing other things. So, that is one huge exception.

Dictionary.com defines a moderationist as “a person who favors, supports, or promotes moderation. ” According to this article, you readers likely believe that this is who I am for the most part. I can honestly say that this definition sounds like what I’m trying to put across - To be slightly moderationist, to try to keep your life open and balanced. But perhaps, if you’re like me, you’re not exactly a moderationist, because of that one wonderful, illogical exception.

 

Note: Sorry for being inactive for many weeks. ;] Hope you liked this. Mwahugs :*