I have had pale skin my entire life. The best tan I’ve ever gotten was a barely-there tan line on the top of my right foot after spending a week in the sun at summer camp. If you’ve grown up pale, you know the struggle of lathering on sunscreen every time you step outside. You also know there are lots of perks that come along with being the pale kid on the block.

1. You Save Lots Of Time And Sweat

While your tan friends complain that they look pale in the winter, you never even think about your skin color in the cold months because it is exactly the same as it was mid-July. In the summer when your tan friends spend hours upon hours in the summer trying to perfect their tan, you maintain a beautifully (though sometimes frustratingly) unchanging color. Plus, you can sit inside watching Netflix or reading a good book without feeling like you’re missing out on getting your tan lines.

2. Built-In Vampire, Voldemort, Snowman or Snow White Costume

When Halloween rolls around, you are already half way to the perfect costume. Want to be a vampire? Just add a little blood make up and a cape. Snow White? Do your normal makeup thing and add the dress. You’re ready to go in a jiffy.

3. You Never Have To Test Foundation Colors

You know you’re a zero or negative zero—whatever the lightest shade carried by your favorite makeup brand is. You save valuable seconds at the drug store or online shopping because you know to just select the lightest shade available.

4. You Never Get A Farmer’s Tan

Those weird tan lines from wearing t-shirts, monokinis, arm bands, watches, capris, and other summer apparel don’t scare you because you know you’ll be so covered in sunscreen that you’ll emerge from the sun without a tan line.

5. You Get To Be The Center Of Attention

Anytime you’re in a room with tan people, everyone miraculously notices you. “Wow, you’re so pale.” “Whoa, where are the sun glasses?” “What’s up, pasty?” I know. Sometimes it’s annoying, but if you’re a seasoned pale person, you know how to use this to your advantage, and you probably have a couple crafty comebacks up your vampire sleeve.

6. People Know When You’ve Been Working Out

Admit it. We’re all guilty of wanting to let people know we took the time to hit the gym or go on a jog—the good old “humble brag.” When you’re pale, your red face tells the world you’ve just been a healthy human and exercised.

7. You Glow Like An Angel

Right after a fresh coat of lily white foundation, your face sometimes literally glows from the paleness. You’re an angel, a real-life angel.

8. You're Really Good At Winning Snow Ball Fights

You blend in with the white snow, so no one sees you coming. Score for you. Snow in the face for them.

9. No One Hits On You At The Beach

When you're laying out on the beach, you're the same color as the sand, so no obnoxious guys try to hit on you. You can take this form of camouflage up a level by also wearing a white swimsuit.

Whether you have the darkest complexion or the palest, the important thing to remember is that you are beautiful. You are made perfectly and you are made for a purpose, even down to the color of your skin. Although sometimes I glance longingly at deeper shades of skin, I’ve learned to embrace who I am and love the skin I was born with. While this list is meant to be humorous, the important message behind the giggles is that even the parts of you that some people might call imperfections make you perfectly you -- a unique individual who is perfectly special and made in the image of God.