Growing up, we are all surrounded by numbers. The grade you were in, your weight, your bra size, your test scores, your grades, your age, your GPA, and so many more. Society puts these numbers on us like labels. Our self worth becomes defined by these numbers and unfortunately, we see them everywhere. In school and even in our closets.
As a college student or even a high school student, numbers are everywhere. There are these preconceived notions that you are going no where in life if do not have a good a GPA or high test scores. Our entire life becomes surrounded by these numbers and we become obsessed. Obsessed to the point that we would do anything to reach these numbers and in the process, we forget about ourselves. We are told that if you have a low GPA, then you are “dumb”. We are told that if you get a low grade on a test, then you “didn’t try”, and we are told that if you score low on a test, then you “wont be accepted into college or graduate school”. We are told these lies every single day when none of them are true. Our intelligence gets labeled by these numbers. Why am I called dumb if my test scores are low? Why am I called stupid if my GPA is low? Why is my intelligence defined by these unnecessary standards? Your GPA does not define your intelligence. Your test scores do not define your intelligence. Your grades do not define your intelligence. Just because I do not have a 4.0 GPA, does not mean I am less of a person than the kid with the 4.0. Just because I got a 60 percent on a test does not mean I am stupid and it does not mean I didn’t try as hard as I possibly could. Everyone is different and everyone learns differently. Everyone has different strengths. One person could be a great test taker, and another could be a horrible test taker but, that does not mean that the person who does not test well is not smart. We all need to take a step back and realize that a grade on an exam, or in a class is just a number and does not define your future and it does not define who you are as a person. If you put in 110 percent, then that’s all that matters. If you tried your absolute hardest and that landed you with a C in a class, then so be it. That C does not mean you are stupid, dumb, or unintelligent. Your future and intelligence does not get defined by numbers.
As women, and men, we see numbers that define who we are. We see numbers on a scale and on our clothing. We go shopping for a pair of shoes and see a number on the box. We look for a new bra and once again, we see another number. We are surrounded by numbers that define our beauty. We are told as women, and even as men, that we have to weigh a specific amount, or fit into a specific size to even be considered beautiful. We are told that if you wear a size ten in jeans, then you are “fat”. We are told that if you wear a size 36 bra, then you are “fat”. We are told that if you weigh more than a specific number, then you are “fat”. We look down at a scale and become ashamed of who we are and what we look like just because of that one number. Women become obsessed with these numbers, striving for perfection, which could lead to serious issues like eating disorders. Everyone needs to be reminded that your weight, pant size, shoe size, and even bra size are just plain and simple numbers. Numbers that have no significance to your beauty. That number on your pants, shoes, or even on the scale, is just a number that does not, and will not, define your self worth as a human being.
Every single person on this earth is intelligent and beautiful in his or her own way. Don’t be ashamed for getting that 60 percent on an exam. Don’t be ashamed for wearing a size ten jeans, and don’t be ashamed for wanting to eat that cookie at 12:00 in the morning with the fear of gaining weight. You go rock those jeans and enjoy that cookie. So, instead of counting the calories, or looking at your GPA, count the number of times you smiled today, or made someone else smile. Count the amount of times you told yourself that you were beautiful this week, and look at something that makes you smile instead of that annoying GPA. Your life is so beautiful and your life is so much more than a number.
