To the girl who has never been tan in her entire life,

I feel you. For my entire existence on this earth, I have been both blessed and cursed with the same skin tone as my mother, which is... pale. My father and brother, however, have the type of skin where they can tan nicely, and almost never get a sunburn, so in other words, the exact opposite of me. But I am here to tell you that you are not alone my friend, as we are in the same boat together.

At the exact moment that I am typing this, I am sitting in my room, with sunburn on my shoulders, thighs, arms, face, etc. all because I was optimistic about my ability to tan. One of my summer goals was to get a tan, or at least attempt to become tan. This goal was especially brought to my mind this past week when I went to a waterpark with two of my beautifully tan friends, while I was next to them, feeling as though I was practically a ghost next to them. Now I'm insecure in a bathing suit as it is but let's also add in the fact that my skin looks an especially pasty shade of white when I'm with my friends, so being with them just adds a whole new layer of fun.

It can be pretty tiring hearing the same things when you are someone who sunburns easily. People will try to tell you that your sunburn might turn into a tan, but you will just laugh. You know better. I know better! But that won't stop us from trying to reach our tanning dreams now, will it? People will also try to tell you that you really aren't that pale when we all know they are lying. I am pale. I know it, you know it, so why try to tell me otherwise?

Now being pale does have it's perks, whether or not I see them all the time. Being pale will save you money at Halloween because you won't need makeup to be a ghost! You also won't get those weird tan lines that people get all the time, like with Chacos! Makeup shopping is also very easy, as when shopping for foundation, I know just to reach for the palest shade they have, and almost every time it will be a perfect match. Being pale also allows for you to not obsess over becoming tan as much, because while others are trying desperatley to reach the darkest shade they can, you've come to the inevitable concusion that it is hopeless, so why try?

So while my goal of becoming tan looks out of reach, I know that it won't stop me from trying, because I will continue to try being tan for the rest of this summer, and if we are being honest, probably every summer from now on. But until the day comes where I can finally reach my goal of being tan, I will find happiness in my uniqueness.

Stay proud, my pale friend!

-An equally sunburnt, yet happy, pale Sarah