Every Body is Beautiful.

Okay, here's the thing: Every single body is beautiful. It makes me so sad to see fat-shaming, skinny-shaming, "what's your excuse," "thinspiration," "fitspiration," "real women have curves," and anything else that promotes body competition, or essentially says that one body type is better than another. Why do we listen to "rules" about beauty created by people hoping to sell us products once we are convinced we aren't good enough on our own? And why do we sometimes think that if we just had enough or were thin enough or beautiful enough, we would somehow be happy or more worthy of love? You can be happy now. You are worthy of love now. That's right. NOW. No matter your size, no matter your weight, no matter your height, no matter your skin color, no matter your cellulite, imperfections, or any of the superficial things we tell ourselves make us less than those around us.

I have friends who fall within nearly every spectrum of weight, height, shape, and color. Guess what? They are all beautiful. The very things we dislike, or think make us "different," are very often what makes us uniquely beautiful. And completely aside from our outer appearance, it truly is our inner beauty that makes us radiate. No matter what stage of health you are in, you deserve to feel beautiful and treat yourself with kindness, compassion, and love. I firmly believe that we take care of what we love! Give yourself permission to love your body. It is amazing how freeing it is.

And why does it have to be some kind of competition? It makes me so sad to see women pitted against each other, judging each other for superficial reasons, competing for attention from guys, and worst of all, bringing others down to try to feel better about themselves. My goal is to love myself every day, and to help anyone else I can love themselves too, and recognize the worth that they have. The women you encounter every day are sisters. They are daughters of God, and all struggling with personal trials, fears, weaknesses, and doubts. Wouldn't it be better for everyone if we were kinder, more open, more helpful, and less competitive? There isn't just one right way to be beautiful. Appreciate the beauty in yourself and those around you.