Last night I ran Vancouver’s Underwear Affair 10km, raising money for cancers below the belt. The event was awesome. The course was so beautiful – from the Seaforth Armouries at 1st & Burrard along the entire False Creek seawall and back over the Burrard Street Bridge. Not surprisingly, this run is very much a spectator sport; hundreds of people racing in their underwear has a tendency to bring out the people-watchers in droves.
What I loved about the race was that there were bodies of all shapes and sizes donning their skivvies for a cause and, quite frankly, I was surprised and impressed with the level of confidence many of the runners seemed to display. I did not run in my underwear… mostly because I was running this event by myself and thought it would be weird without a team of buddies. But if I were to get a little group of friends together, I wouldn’t necessarily be averse to doing it in future.
Most of my life I’ve struggled with body image issues.
I’ve been fat; I’ve been thin; I’ve been in-between. I’ve had big boobs and small boobs. I’ve worn flattering clothing and not-so-flattering clothing; I’ve worn fully-covering wrap things on the beach and I’ve donned a bikini. I’ve made poor food choices; I’ve suffered from disordered behaviour including binge eating and over-exercising and I’ve smoked cigarettes to help me control my weight.
Even now I often think about having a few things fixed: The lines in my face seem to be developing at an astonishing rate, my mangled two-c-section tummy is a bit of an eyesore and the girls are not what they used to be; but beauty is more than the physical. Besides, what is the ideal anyway? God made all of humanity to have the same components in such varying shapes, sizes and colours that, aside from biological anomalies like identical multiples, there are billions of unique designs. Which one exactly am I supposed to be modeling myself after?
In the last couple of months I’ve developed an appreciation for the skin I’m in. Life is too short to worry about how well we stack up physically against those around us… besides, it’s not a contest.
When I think of how critical I’ve been of my body over the years I cringe when I think of just how normal I was and yet how awkward and destroyed I felt on the inside. And now with my beautiful imperfections I can at least appreciate that this body has grown two babies, run hundreds of kilometers, earned a black belt, jumped out of airplanes, and will spend (hopefully) the next 50 years or so serving my children, my family and friends and enjoying this beautiful life I’ve been given.
My friends, it’s time to start loving the bodies we’ve been given. Whether you’re tall, short, skinny, fat, freckled, hairy, balding, jiggly, muscular, dainty, scarred, lanky, apple or pear shaped… if you’ve got wrinkles, varicose veins, saggy boobs, man-boobs, a flat bum, a round bum, thick ankles, big ears, hair in the wrong places or nasty toenails, enjoy that you are alive for a purpose and that beautiful body of yours is the only one you’ve got.
… and I think it’s perfect, just the way it is. So does your mom.
7 Comments
Fantastic post. Really, really great. It's so funny, I'm at a weight now that I haven't been since highschool and I HATED my body back then. But now I love my body, imperfections and all. I wish I could go back to highschool me and tell her that curves are to be valued and that fitness is more important than scale numbers. Without a time machine, I just hope I can convey that to my kids. :)
Awesome post!! It's not what you wear (your body), it's how you wear it.
Amen!
I love this. I think I am finally now, at this point in my life, feeling comfortable in my own skin. It's taken a while, but it's coming. There is no perfection, except the miraculous perfection of every person.
Darlin',you have always,and will always be one of the most powerfully attractive Women
I've ever known...and it ain't your personality that catches my eye from across the room ;)
lol,yes,it IS the Essential You that is like a candle to the moth,but the skin God gift-wrapped you in ain't shabby at all.
Those "lines on your face"?
Those are experiences,paragraphs,chapters of an amazing story written there for the rest of us to read,if only we take the time.
I for one,can read some things written on your face that make me a better person for seeing them,and count myself blessed.
I see the tale of triumphs and trials,of weakness found and made into Strengths.
I can tell where you've climbed great heights,and know where you stumbled and faltered,only to find your stride and resume the journey.
My heart swells with pride and admiration for the things that you've endured and accepted,when many wouldn't,and refused to face.
When I look at you,I don't see any of those things you initially mentioned,
I see someone who has always been an example of Decency and Honor to me.
I see a Friend who I love,and who loves me,and I see an Amazing,and Beautiful Woman.
We have to start learning to see ourselves through our own eyes again,
instead of seeing Beauty through the Hollywood lens.
Great post!
I'm over comparing myself to the image of others, but my vice is the fact I'm not happy with where I'm at, but too lazy to do anything about it. I guess it's just a combination of issues of my own creation that I have to figure out. And it's not so much image that I'm concerned about, but my general health and fitness - I want to get back into "shape" so-to-speak.
It took me a few months to finally come read this, but I love your perspective! I'm not there myself, but for me liking my body is closely tied to being healthy. And I'm not healthy right now, so I'm workin' on it. ;)
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