Alright folks, buckle up. I’m about to talk about a pretty sensitive, yet important subject.
There’s been a lot of talk on the internet lately about weight. Everyone is concerned with how much other people weigh, and so many judge others based on the size of their bodies. Why do we do this? Because we, as people who have thoughts and tend to speak them, perpetuate the idea that if you are not skinny or slender, then you are not beautiful.
You may be saying to yourself right now, “I don’t perpetuate that at all. I think everyone’s gorgeous! You’re wrong, random Odyssey author!”
If you really do think that, then that’s awesome. You see past the superficial and see straight to the important stuff: a person’s character and personality. But if there’s a little voice in the back of your head that’s whispering overweight people just aren’t pretty, maybe you should reevaluate your opinions.
Now, I know that there are some serious health risks to carrying more body fat than your bones are built for. But the truth of the matter is that some people just weigh more. We, as outside spectators, have no idea why a person weighs what he or she weighs.
On the other hand, we also don’t know why some people weigh less than we would expect. Some people, like me, are petite and don’t weigh a lot compared to their peers. No matter how many pizza rolls and brownies we stuff down our throats, we cannot gain a pound. Our metabolisms are just too high, even if we don’t work out.
“Oohh no,” you’re saying to yourself now. “You’re skinny. Your body fits society’s beauty standards. Cry me a river.”
Skinny people have it super easy, right? They don’t have to shop in special stores for their size. Hollister and Abercrombie & Fitch were made for girls without curves. No butt? No problem! Slip on a pair of American Eagle jeans, and you’re good to go.
Except, here’s the thing: lately, there’s been a rash of posts (mostly on Facebook, which I abhor, but nonetheless check several times a day) about what a real woman looks like. A “real woman” has curves, doesn’t have a thigh gap, isn’t worried about counting calories, and is overall an upstanding example of what a “real” woman looks like. I hate the idea that for some reason, plus-size women are more “real” than slender women. It’s ludicrous. No one person is any more or less real than any other!
I won’t pretend to know how it feels to be considered less beautiful than other people just because you weigh more than 100 pounds. But I also won’t pretend that I ever am able to identify with the stunning models on magazine covers or fashion show runways. Just because you’re thin, doesn’t mean you’re automatically able to walk like an Angel in a Victoria’s Secret fashion show.
And please, please, please, stop commenting on other people’s size. It is just as rude and unpleasant to tell your cashier that she’s “the skinniest thing you ever saw” as it is to say “you could really lose a few pounds” (two complete strangers told me the first quote at work the other day). Mind your own business when it comes to other peoples’ weight. It’s not your place to say anything.
The long and short of it is that no matter your weight, all that you have to worry about is your health and how you feel. Wear those shorts you want to wear. Buy a bikini for the first time ever. Forget everyone who looks at you funny. It’s your body. You’re living your life in it. And that’s all that matters.
