The Body Image Bear
Today I happened upon a Crosswalk.com Women's article called "Wrestling the Body Image Bear." Holy crap that struck a nerve. It's an amazing article about women and physical body image and how it affects their marriage relationships. As a single woman I don't get that part so much, but I surely could identify with the whole concept of feeling undesirable and ugly, yet having someone love me because of or in spite of those things - looking at the real me.I've been very, very blessed with a wonderful community of friends who remind me daily that I am a beautiful woman. They remind me that beauty is who a person is, not what she looks like. Beauty is a product of love, and if that's the case, then considering all the friends who love me, I am the most beautiful woman in the world.
I have a God who places my worth above rubies. He showers me with blessings and gifts that I cannot begin to thank Him for. He loves me with an everlasting love and He designs all things for my best. Even in a situation as bleak as Monday's, He can bring beauty out of that ugliness. He has given me back my voice to speak words of pain and healing and power so that the evil done to me cannot rule me.
As I was researching images to use to illustrate this article, I came upon a blog called "fat feminism" which I plan to read religiously. The woman who writes it calls herself a "Rubens Woman," referring to Paul Rubens, the famous painter of curvaceous, voluptuous, larger-than-life beauties of a time long past. On her blog I found an article, "Spock Does Fat," about a wonderful photography collection by none other than the inimitable Leonard Nimoy. The collection, "Full Body Project," is online and fabulous.
My favorite photo is at the bottom of this page. It is a wonderful shot of sexy, vibrant women who are beautiful, joyful, and unashamed of who they are. I want to be that. I want to BELIEVE I'm as beautiful as these women. I want to BELIEVE I'm as beautiful as my friends tell me. And you know what? One of these days I will.
Now if you'll excuse me, I need to find a stairway and dance.
3 comments:
You are a role model to so many other women because you recognize and celebrate that beauty is so much more than your physcial appearance. You may be very interested in The Beautiful Women Project (www.beautifulwomenproject.org), a traveling photo-documentary that profiles the lives of 35 women with the message that it is the sum of a woman's life experiences that makes her beautiful. If you are unable to see the exhibition in person, we do companion book that is availabe through online retailers and your local bookstore. The images are real women doing captured in doing things that spoke to the woman they were at that point in their life or when something that truly made them feel beautiful. I hope that you enjoy!
Thank you for writing this blog about the Full Body Project. I am one of the models in the book (and in the the picture you posted!).
Leonard Nimoy has given me permission to create a MySpace page, if you would like to learn more about the project, the models or become our "friend".
You are definitely beautiful for making your journey public. And, I would love to meet you on a staircase for some dancing.
Best wishes,
Lady Monster
What a great picture!
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