Almost everyone has a scar (or two, or five) that they don’t like. Whether it reminds them of something upsetting or it is “unsightly," most people spend a lot of time trying to get rid of or covering up their scars. I would be lying if I said that I have never been this person. I’ve tried everything from patches to steroid shots to surgery, just to get rid of some scars and now that I am a little older I realize how ridiculous my obsession with clearing my skin of scars really is.

We all know what a scar is. Scars are the result of our skin healing after experiencing some type of damage. To consider the process our body undergoes when damaged and the process of scar tissue formation, it is easy to find the way our skin can repair itself magnificently. Why would we want to hide such a beautiful feat of nature?

Aside from the biological awesomeness of the scarring process, scars are visual reminders of our past. Life is tough sometimes, we’re humans, we get hurt, we hurt ourselves, we get sick, we break bones, it happens but the amazing thing is that we can somehow recover. We fix ourselves, we heal and we become stronger. Our scars remind us where we’ve been, what we’ve been through and even though what caused a scar was probably painful we can rest assured that we overcame that pain. Overcoming, getting stronger, getting wiser, rebuilding, repairing, healing, these are abilities that we should be proud of and never, ever ashamed of.

Our scars are little snapshots that capture moments of pain and injury turned to healing and triumph. They are visual reminders of the continuous destruction and rebuilding that life drives us through. Scars are representations of some of the most significant building blocks of our characters and we should bear them like badges of honor. Don’t hide your scars from the world — show them off. Those are your battle wounds and they show your strength, determination and perseverance so wear them proudly.