I need to get back to that. I need to be my own beholder, to find beauty in my own eye. I know my husband finds me beautiful. I don't know if anyone else does, but that's okay. I need to know that I find myself beautiful, too.
Tonight I'm finding beauty in the imperfections. In the things that make me who I am.
The scar on the inside of my forearm, from when I burned myself pulling a tray of hot cookie out of the oven (mmm cookies). The scar on my thumb from my run in with the apple corer. And finally, the maybe possible scar on my forehead from the time I rammed my head into the car door because I was paying more attention to my cup of coffee and boldly attempting to get into the car without spilling a single, precious drop [I didn't].
My goal is to do this every week, to find some beauty in myself. I hope you'll comment or (better yet) blog about your own beauty. It's there. I promise.
24 comments:
I totally agree with you, right before I give birth, I feel fantastic!
Trying to find my post-baby fantastic...
It is really hard for me to feel beautiful sometimes. I'll admit it. My sister and I are both nearly 6' tall, but she is super skinny and bony, while I am curvy. It is hard to hear how beautiful your sister is, while being described in comparison as the "smart one."
Over the years, I have found comfort in being the "smart one." It has helped me achieve a lot more than her tiny waistline ever has. I take pride in the fact that I have had over half of my college education paid for, and can hold an intelligent conversation.
I also find beauty in the things that make me unique. Like the scars from Lyme disease breakouts, the "snake-bite" scars from the time I broke my humorous bone (and no, nurses, for the 1000th time, it is not "humorous."), and the scar from having a precancerous birthmark removed.
Hopefully one day, our world will shift it's standard of beauty, but until then, I'm happy being me. Thanks for writing this post. I felt like I needed to get that off my chest. :)
You are beautiful, inside and out.
Scars and coffee battle wounds and all. All just perfectly gorgeous on you.
What a great thing to do for yourself!
I can so relate! I feel beautiful when pregnant (even though I'm sick and puking the entire 9 months...) I think it's because curves are beautiful because it means life is inside of you... but once baby is born, those beautiful curves are... beautiful flab? However, I too am TRYING to see beauty... my beauty. Having a daughter has helped me see things differently.
But you??? You ARE beautiful! SERIOUSLY! don't doubt that!!
Love this. Sometimes it is so hard for us to find the beauty in ourselves, I am embracing all of my scars, my stretchmarks everything because despite it all, I know I am beautiful!
I'm guessing you're already familiar with The Shape of a Mother? But if not, or if some other readers don't know it, my goodness -- go visit and add it to your regular blog reading. I <3 it.
Finding our own beauty is so tough, especially in a culture where we're bombarded with "perfection" everywhere we look. Making a conscious effort to do so is a step in the right direction. I'll try to join you!
I do not feel beautiful when I am pregnant...But, since I will probably not be pregnant again, I should learn to see the beauty of the stretch marks and what they mean and how they are a sign of what my body brought into this world.
I think you are beautiful. Totally! This is similar to an assignment at the Sisterhood last week.
We all need to remember that the imperfections are what make beauty special.
I really love this. I am hyper aware of how I perceive myself now that I have a daughter. I know how beautiful she is, both inside and out. I know nothing will ever, ever change that for me. That means my Mom must feel the same about me. I am working on appreciating me too. I want to set a good example for her.
I decided to do this two-fold, because to me both inner and outer beauty are important. Outer? I love the shape and color of my eyes. They are brown with just a hint of green if you really look. I like it when people notice the green - it's a little different which I like, and it means they are really looking at me. Inner? I think I have a wealth of compassion for others. I hurt with and cry with them, whether I know them or not. I want to help. Genuinely (and sometimes naively) want to help however I can.
i am a little weird this way, but i have always liked my scars. i think because they are little pieces about me that have stories behind them. i have a chicken pox scar on my face near my eye, and one on my leg. i have a scar on the back of my arm from where my locker attacked me in junior high, and two on my knee from separate childhood accidents. and one on my ankle that no one.. not me or my sister or my parents can remember how i got it. but i like them. and over the years, they've all begun to fade, to wear i actually have to look for them now. and that kind of makes me sad, believe it or not.
OMG, I have the cookie pan burn scar on my arm too! Although it's faded a lot in the last few years, I can still see it.
I have really good hair though and feet. Yep, good feet too... ;-)
it is hard for me to feel pretty and proud of what i look like sometimes, but there are those rare days when I look in the mirror and say, wow your eyes look awesome! what a good thing to lift your spirits!
you are beautiful and the scars are life memories to remind you of the little things!
You are beautiful, both inside and out. Imperfections are beautiful. Some believe that perfection of any kind is an affront to the Gods. I don't have to worry about that. So... I do love my scar across my pinkie finger on my right hand from when, at 4 years old, I slammed the car door on it. My Dad was a hero that day... and my grandchildren now LOVE my scar!
You and I have never met, but...
I think you, your words, and your face are BEAUTIFUL.
When I look back, being pregnant was the time I felt the most beautiful and the most comfortable with my body. It was like the world overlooks your imperfections when you've got a big baby belly... wish they could do that all the time. (And, can't wait to get back there!)
But if I had to pick something out... I think I have beautiful hands, and I hope they are something that my daughter remembers long after I'm gone.
I often wonder if that's why I always want to be pregnant, because that's when I felt more sure about myself, more beautiful. What now? We will have to work to find it. But we'll still find it.
Steph
Right now i'm in my 6 month of pregnancy with our 5th child and first boy, i've gained a huge butt and equally huge stomach. This pregnancy is completely different then the first 4, my hair doesn't have that shiny beauty, I have pimples that make my 12 year old jealous and my boobs.. are well.. soo much smaller than they were with the girls! My proportions are off a little;) It's still nice to know that I have a reason to look like I do but i'm kind of mentally prepping myself for the aftermath of this pregnancy, the workouts and Jillian Michels screaming at me. Thankfully I will be entering sweater and layer months!
But there are mornings when my hair doesn't cooperate, the blemishes taunt me and my misproportions get the best of me and I want to climb back into bed! I hate those unpretty days.. (is it bad to dream of a tummy tuck even though I know i'll never go through with it??) lol
I love you for this.
You know I think you're stunning.
I like my cheekbones, and I'm blogging about it. Thank you for the platform.
you are so beautiful, e. I just have a big ole girl crush on you :)
I definitely feel more beautiful when I'm pregnant ... well, now that I'm past the sweaty oily morning sickness phase.
So true! So true! I felt amazing while I was pregnant... if only we could bottle that b/c now I'm working on finding that beauty again, too!
You are incredible... I love coming here to read your honest and look at your fabulous pictures. I can really relate in so many ways.
Thank you!
I think it's amazing how hard we are on ourselves. How we don't see what others see.
How someone could have the exact same body as us, and we would swear they look better.
Good for you for doing this... I look forward to reading every week.
(thinking about something I like about myself...)
wow. great post. it IS so hard to get caught up in all the "blah" of life... i just felt like that today, in fact. thank you for the reminder that we ALL have beautiful things in us!!
blessings Erin
www.workwifemomlife.com
I totally understand. I just did a similar post-so we can embrace our beauty together....because girl you are beautiful!!
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