Something totally unexpected happened to me today.
I was at one of my favorite stores, shopping away, preparing my wardrobe for summer. I took a whole bunch of clothes in the dressing room with me, and as I was in there for a grueling amount of time admiring dresses, adjusting shorts and mixing and matching outfits, other people came and went. Among those people, some really stuck out to me. Though I couldn’t see them (because that would be really weird), I could hear some of their conversations.
It started with some young girls, who I imagine were in middle school, who were trying on clothes. One girl was trying on dress after dress, and the second girl (who was an amazing friend, by the way) kept running in and out, fetching her friend different styles and sizes. The first girl picked out something wrong while trying on every dress, whether it be that her arms looked too large or her stomach protruded too much. She couldn’t come to a happy consensus on a dress. Listening to the conversation really started to make me think, and I felt terrible for the first girl. She just wanted to look beautiful, and to find something in the store that would show her beauty to the world.
Shortly after this, a guy came into the dressing room to try on some shirts. I’m assuming after he put them on, he FaceTimed a friend for some help. As his friend kept telling him he looked fine, the guy shut down every compliment, saying he couldn’t believe that he was now an extra large and that he couldn’t believe he let himself get like this, and that he didn’t like the shirts he used to enjoy. My heart went out to him so much. He then walked out, and I was left to really think about what I heard.
I was sad, confused and a little angry. I so badly just wanted to help and reach out to these people who felt so uncomfortable in their skin. Because I didn’t have the courage, and because I felt like it’d be inappropriate for me to try and comfort them in a dressing room, I decided to write an open letter to anyone who feels uncomfortable and a little down when they walk out of a dressing room. I’ve been there, and I’m sure a lot of us have. However, just because the one shirt you really like didn’t fit right, or you’ve gone up a size, doesn’t mean you’re not beautiful.
There will always be an article of clothing you look amazing in, and someone who finds so many perfections among all the flaws you may see. I know it’s hard to look past your insecurities and find the flawlessness that Beyoncé has the ability to find. But I promise you that behind your stretch marks, your scars, your wrinkles or behind anything else that you may have come to hate, there is so much more for you to love. You’re incredible, you’re amazing and you're beautiful. So next time, try on that outfit with confidence, and take it off feeling like it’ll be OK whether it worked or not, and walk out knowing you’ll always be able to find the perfect outfit to fit your perfect self.
