It’s funny you know. With the passage of time, false glamour & beauty standards have bewitched us in the worst way possible. Today, I find myself among young girls who are starving themselves to attain ‘the ideal’ body types, mid-aged women who’re rushing to make appointments & get botox done. Long smooth shiny legs, thick glossy hair, voluptuous breasts & full lips, tiny waist that can barely fit in the internal organs without squeezing them & glassy skin. This is what the perfect body shape, beauty standards sound like, right? This is the ‘it’ body. The question is who idealized the ‘it’ body, who even made these beauty standards? Who said stretch marks & cellulite are not beautiful? Why are we all in a rush to get the ‘it’ body.

Now, I do not say that we should not be active or should splurge on junk all day, every day. Being healthy is a must. Being healthy is beautiful. But since when did we start prioritizing our looks, our bodies, our appearances over our mental & emotional health. I know a lot of people, a lot of women & men, a lot of faces, who look in the mirror & complain. Complain about their nose being long, their height being short, their skin tone being dark & uneven & well, whatnot. I find people hating the way they look & what pains me is how we have normalized this. Who says a long nose is not beautiful? Who told us we had to look a certain way to match the beauty standards. What are these beauty standards anyway? Why do they continue to exist every day? Sad how we all religiously abide by them & continue hating our beautiful, wonderful bodies. So since whenever & however these teachings, these standards have continued, it’s high time we stop normalizing them.

It’s time we tell our younger ones how every body type, every skin color, every face is beautiful in its own unique way. It’s time we tell our daughters that how stretch marks are fierce & pretty, it’s time we teach our sons that their body physique is handsome no matter how tall or short it is. It’s time we change the perspective. It’s time we compliment our mothers and grandmothers on the way the look & tell them their skin is beautiful, their wrinkles and skin folds are graceful. It’s time we teach ourselves the balance between healthy food & soul food. It’s time we learn & follow the right self-care regime, it’s time we spread the right body positivity. It’s time to start nourishing our souls & brains. Because beauty comes in all shapes & sizes, beauty lies in every color, beauty lies in smiles & laughter & eyes.

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