As I sat in the car on the way to dinner a few nights ago, applying my makeup, I sensed a pair of wandering eyes being directed toward me. I looked over to discover my 9-year-old sister following every small detail of my routine. She whispered to me, "Let me borrow some makeup; I need it." I shook my head no as she continued attempting to convince me to allow her to borrow my foundation and eye shadow. After consistent denial, she folded her arms and gave me a look of disapproval as we continued our trip.

The next afternoon I was in my parent's bathroom applying my makeup. She came in, curiously, asking me the same question. Frustrated, I told her no and this time asked why she wanted to wear it so badly. Her answer left be frozen in disbelief.

She responded, "Because I am ugly without it and need it to be pretty."

I stared at her porcelain skin, huge blue eyes and bow-tie lips, speechless.

How could such an innocent and beautiful soul truly believe that she needed materialistic products to allow herself to be "pretty" or "attractive"?

Then I looked at myself in the mirror, putting on makeup with the same mindset, and it dawned on me: my 9-year-old sister is struggling with the same view of self-acceptance that I battle with every day.

I mean, can you blame her? We are conditioning our little girls to not appreciate their natural appearance. There is a popular video circulating around Twitter of a gorgeous little girl, contouring and flawlessly applying her eye shadow and mascara, and she cannot be any older than 6 or 7. And the saddening part about it is people are praising her for her extraordinary "talent" — including myself.

We have to stop.

Stop worshiping the girls with the "perfect eyebrows" and start realizing the elegance in thick, un-plucked brows that bring attention to beautiful eyes. Stop wishing for the ability to seamlessly contour cheekbones and start admiring the charm in natural highlights. Stop vying after plump lips doused in lipstick and start appreciating the allure in chapped lips that have only seen EOS or Carmex. We are encouraging an image of women that is nearly impossible to achieve on a day-to-day basis, an image that is giving birth to a negative perception not only for teenagers and adults, but also for little girls who are attempting to discover what it's going to take to be "beautiful."

Our generation grew up with pink and blue rubber bands in our braces, frizzy hair with split ends and jeans that always seemed to be a little too short. Nowadays, you can't even tell if a girl is 14 or 20, and that is scary. The preteens that don't spend an hour on their makeup are being bullied and ridiculed because they're not fitting into society's status quo for females.

I fear for the daughters and granddaughters of millennials. They are going to grow up in a world that does not consider the ramifications of false beauty perception, and are going to reap the consequences because of it. The view of self-worth doesn't end with little girls or teens; it carries into our high school years, college years and even far into adulthood. Sometimes I hear the same words come out of my mother's mouth, and it only proves that with every woman comes a long list of features and flaws that they wish they could change. But the fact of the matter is: we can't — and that is OK.

Let us form a new concept of beauty — one that isn't going to punish those who decide to embrace the naturalness of their appearance. Don't get me wrong, I like my makeup as much as the next girl, but it is not necessary for us to be dependent on it. We should have the confidence to attend a formal event and not feel the need to have the perfect smoky eye or lipstick shade, nor should we be judged for it by those who do.

So go bare.

Shine your zits and sleepy bags proud.

The features that make you unique give light to your experiences and personality. One of the most rewarding things is being able to hold an elderly person's hand that is now fragile, but holds so many stories and triumphs with each wrinkle it shows. Tell a story with your expressions, not your makeup. Be fearless in not just your looks, but also your soul.

I want my 9-year-old sister to grow up in a world that is going to praise her more for her personality and character; not for how pretty she is. We have the power to alter the beauty perception of this society, and it all begins with our ability to accept our appearance and to have certainty that it is beautiful despite what everyone else is telling us.