Gold: A Digital Scrapbook 1 | Page 13

I'm fairly comfortable with my physique. I know

I'm not the most curvy, most fit person out there,

but like I've said, I'm comfortable with it. Do I

sometimes wish I could have a model's body? Yes,

of course. I mean, who wouldn't? Even so,

I don't hate myself for the chubs or fats I have. I

don't hate myself for my sometimes-appearing

double chin, or for the lack of my thigh gap. Over

the years, I have learned to love my own body even for

its flaw-ful-ness.

Like the quote on the right says, "You'll inherit & develop flaws, and that's okay." Instead of bullying myself on how much flaws I am, I choose to accept it. In that way, I am making myself strong. I'm making myself

invulnerable to the people who'll look down on me for what I look like. It's still takes a conscious effort for me to have a mindset like this, but it's something I won't give up on.

This is where the term "self-love"

comes in. Oft times, people think self-love is giving

yourself bubble baths, putting on expensive products of

skincare, choosing to have the extra-rice meal, or sleeping in on a Saturday morning. And that's good. That's self-love. But self love is also a state of mind. It's looking in the mirror, seeing your reflection on windows, and telling yourself, this is me. I am beautiful. I am happy the way I am. It's not letting the numbers on your weighing scale bother you, except thinking how healthy and happy you are. Although, choosing to lose weight is also self-love. Basically, self-love is doing whatever you want to do because YOU want to do it and it's healthy for you.

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P.S. What helped me get through my body-conscious face is my swim team. Seeing each others' flaws and being exposed in only our swim wear made me realize that we all have different body types and I should accept mine as they accept theirs.