Haven't you had enough? Go. Get yourself back.
I wrote this for
This Is A Woman.
On Building A Better Body
For as long as I can remember, the media has been selling a perspective to me.
The
perspective the media sells says I'm flawed. I need to look better. I
need to be thinner. I need to hide my imperfections. I need to
pretend they don't exist. I need to pretend I'm something else: maybe
taller, lighter, brighter, wealthier, more educated, more interesting. I
have to look they way they say I should look. I have to wear what they
are selling. If I can't wear it, I have to try and change myself so
that I can.
And if I buy what they are selling, I can't do all of this. It's
impossible. So there have been times in my life when I have been
trapped.
Have you ever been trapped by what they are selling?
How many shoulds do you have?
I can't go to the beach because I don't look they way I should in my bathing suit.
I don't want to go out because I should look better than I do right now.
I will not graciously accept your compliment because I know what I should look like, and I don't believe you.
I can't enjoy the day until I have my makeup on, my hair just right, my clothes covering anything that isn't as small as it should be.
I won't be photographed because I don't like how I look, I believe I should look better than I do.
Don't mistake me. I am not a helpless victim to what the media
sells. I chose to buy it. There is no gun pointed at my head. There
is no one forcing me to believe what I see/read/hear.
