Body Image

I haven't blogged in a while.  That doesn't mean I haven't had any thoughts, it means that I have been spending the summer with my children being home.  It was a wonderful summer.  I thoroughly enjoyed my college girl being home for the summer as well as no schedules and lots of fun.  Anywho, the kids are back in school and my thoughts will be back on paper.

I love to thrift shop.  My youngest and I were at Goodwill Saturday when a random woman walked up to me and said, "I don't mean to be weird, but you have the prettiest legs of anyone I have ever seen. They are the prettiest shade of brown and they have a gorgeous shape."

Well I handled that comment by thanking her and smiling but it plagued my mind for the rest of the day.  These are things that went through my head:
Did she notice the cellulite I am getting on my thighs?
Did she see how fat my upper legs have gotten in the past year?
Did she notice how flabby my belly is and the brown spots that are forming on my face from age?

And then I realized something very important.  I should quit picking myself apart in the mirror and start appreciating God's creation.  God made me just the way I am and I take care of myself and I feel good and am healthy.  Each age spot appearing on my face is a mark of a life well lived.  Each dimple of cellulite is a beacon of time well spent with kids, with family, with friends.  I should get off the scale and do my best to eat and exercise in moderation and stop micromanaging my appearance in the mirror.  Acceptance.  Appreciation of who I am and what I look like.


By no stretch of the imagination am I stating that I feel bad about myself regularly.  I don't.  I have enough self esteem to share with the free world.  But I do get aggravated with my reflection from time to time especially now that each day it seems a new mark of age has shown up somewhere on my body.
Here is the bottom line for me and you.  We need to be happy with who we are.  Accept ourselves for the shape and frame God gave us.  He created us to be salt to the earth and a city that is set on a hill.  Salt and cities come in all shapes and sizes just like we do.  New York City is big and bold and Woodbury Tennessee is small and rural.  Kosher salt is big and iodized salt is small.  All have great purpose and have their own special qualities to bring to our world.  People also have all shapes and sizes and all have a great individual purpose.  May we all focus more on our purpose than our shape.  To the lady who complimented my legs and Goodwill, Thank you.  Thank you more for the lesson than the compliment.

Have a fabulous day and thanks for reading my blog!
Jennifer