*Blows off Dust*

Ahh, it has been way too long.  The last time I wrote a post for this blog, it was the beginning of the school year, and now it's almost July!

I've been away for so long because I've been trying to figure out what kind of content I want to post, based on what I really enjoy, and what I want to share with people.  My previous posts have been "Buzzfeed-esque", which were fun to write, but lately, I've been realizing how passionate I am about different issues, and that I shouldn't be afraid to discuss my opinions or share a deeper and more insightful side of me.

I am the first to admit that I am a very...scared person.  I'm a perfectionist, so many times I am fearful that my efforts to do something different won't be taken the way I want, or that I'll fail.  But failure only occurs when you don't even bother trying.  SO I need to force myself to stop thinking so much, and do what I want.  Because that's when I'll see results.  That's when I'll be more successful--even if I fail.  If that makes sense.

I literally need to read this every day of my life.

But anyway, the first issue that I want to tackle, is that of the "real" woman.  I wrote a previous post on the concept of "beauty" as a whole (check it out here), but this one is geared more toward my ladies, and the obsession society seems to have with our bodies.

I've always been pretty comfortable with my body, even though the people around me may not have felt the same way about how I looked.  I grew up, especially in high school, being called "skinny". And I don't mean the "Wow, you're so skinny and beautiful".  No, the word "skinny" often shot out of people's mouths like venom; it was a distasteful, ugly word, and without a doubt, an insult.  This is because people (both men and women) have this notion that women have to have a certain body, certain attributes that fit their idea of beautiful.  Because "only real women have curves", or "why have a skinny girl when you can have a girl with a real body?".  Excuse me, what????

Everyone has their preferences when it comes to what they find attractive, but there doesn't have to be an either or.  We were all created without error, and if that means that some of us are on one end of the spectrum, some of us are on the other end, and some are sitting in the middle, that doesn't make any of us less of a woman, or less beautiful, capable, interesting, or amazing than the next.  We are all trying to navigate through life the best way we can, and don't need the added stress of trying to live up to the (impossible) expectations of people who don't matter.

We all deserve encouragement, love, and acceptance from not only others, but ourselves, and that comes from knowing that our outer appearance--our size, our clothes, if we choose to put on makeup or not--should not deter from who we are as individuals, and what we have to offer the world.  I just really wanted to remind all the women out there, myself included, that although we should take pride in how we look, and be confident in our bodies and whatnot, we are REAL women regardless of all of it.  We should bring each other up, and remember that beauty isn't one universal look.  Live your life with love: love for others and love for yourself.


I also filmed a video to accompany this post that can be viewed below:

Thank you to those who are reading this, and yay for my resurrected blog!  Consider this a transition period, as I begin to delve into more personal, thoughtful posts, that will hopefully encourage, inspire, and entertain you all (I still have my impeccable sense of humour dontcha know!).

Have a great week (it's Saturday, so like, have a great weekend?  But there's only one day left of the weekend...I don't know)!!!