Everyone Is Beautiful: Body Image
4th of April 2016
I may be late on this one, and for that, I'm sorry. However, I'm saying something about it anyways because I've got something to say about body image. Society has always been outspoken about how a person should look from how he or she should dress, how many tattoos one should or shouldn't have, weight, make-up, bust size, well the list goes on and on. I'm sick of hearing about how hideous a dress looks or how bad someone's make-up is. I'm under the belief that people can be mindful, caring and courteous....if he or she chooses to be. Some people are attention seekers. Others want to be left alone and do their thing. However, everyone, and I mean everyone has something to say about the person sitting next to them.
Body image can be a make or break for one's self esteem. I won't lie to people. I'm fat. I would like to lose weight, and I'm doing all I can to lose it. However, it's not as easy as people think. It's a change in lifestyle, but one day, I will make the change. Knowing I'm fat and want to lose the weight, I don't feel like I'm less of a person. I still help people, and I listen to my friends' problems even when I don't want to. I live by myself without the assistance of anyone. I treat people based on how they treat others and me. I have had people make fun of my weight. However, I don't know a lot of people my size who do as many walks and runs in a year that I do. The comments people say aren't hurtful to me, but they can be to others. People have committed suicide over hurtful comments. People are going to have their opinions, and people are going to judge (whether you think they have the right to judge or not). In fact, the ones that say "Don't judge me" are typically the ones who judge others themselves. A few weeks back, the swimsuit edition for Sports Illustrated came out. They came out with different covers. One cover had UFC female fighter Ronda Rousey on it looking great. Another had the first plus size model on a Sports Illustrated Swimsuit cover. Ashley Graham is her name, and she has been popping up on magazine covers all around. She looks great on her cover as well.
They both are different sizes, but both of them have been told that they are not the ideal woman. They are both gorgeous in my book. There are some women that I don't find attractive that a lot of men do, but I won't name them. I would be doing what I am trying to speak against in this article. Besides, just because I don't find them attractive doesn't mean someone else won't. And it doesn't make her less of a person.
I would feel lucky to be on a date with either Rousey or Graham. They are beautiful inside and out. Unfortunately, most people judge on the outside. If they don't like what shirt someone is wearing, they don't like the person. The only way I would find that acceptable is if the t-shirt said something offensive on it. I mean REALLY offensive like it had a racial slur on it. Something that is meant to hurt.
Around the same time (during March Madness), a post had been going around on Facebook about a waitress who didn't get a tip because she didn't look like a "normal" person. You can read the article here. Going into a place named Zombie Burger, I don't know what they were expecting. The waitress, Taelor, looks amazing, and I don't know what normal means nowadays. I see people with piercings and tattoos more often than without. In fact, I'm to the point where I only trust people with tattoos. I dated a girl without a tattoo once, but I couldn't take it. So, I paid for her first tattoo, and everything was bliss. Anyways, back to the subject on hand, this incident isn't just personal. Taelor didn't make any money off of that table, and she could have spent her time with people who appreciate what she does despite what she looks like, which is beautiful. However, we can't always pick out who the prejudice people are, and as a former server, we can't pick who our customers are. I would like to know what this customer's perception of a "normal looking person" looks like. That way, I know what to stay away from because if it's normal to slam how someone looks based on how they dress or how much they weigh, I'd rather be the opposite of normal, whatever that may be. Strange, weird or in reality, compassionate, open-minded and accepting to difference.
