Size Matters

If you know me or have read me for very long, you’re well aware of a few things:

1.  Coffee and Chai Tea don’t just dominate my thoughts, they dominate me.  And I like it.

2.  I’m the worst driver in the world. So bad, I’ve been known to make myself nervous.

3.  My world revolves around my family, cats and dog.

4.  I love to cook.  I love to eat.

5. Keira Knightley is my favorite actress.

6.  Beyonce is one of my very favorite entertainers - ever.  She’s the stuff in my galaxy.

There are, of course, other things - from Dean Koontz to PePe Le Pew (Yes, the cartoon) - but these six generally get the ball rolling.

It’s actually my girls Keira Knightley and Beyonce Knowles that are stirring my thoughts today.  These two ridiculously beautiful ladies keep getting criticized for their weight, each on different ends of the spectrum. 

Keira and a lot of other thin actresses and models are the fixation of a lot of jokes, posts, outrages, etc.  At any given time you can find people calling them anything from skeletons to gross.  Don’t get me wrong, I have three daughters and I’m as concerned as anyone about the message put out to young girls.  People will justify their criticism and ridicule of the thin girls by saying they’re outraged about the message they’re putting out there for teen girls.  But then these same people will criticize and ridicule females they think are overweight.

They say they’re concerned about the message being written out to young girls, and lo and behold, the ink’s on their hands.

I nearly fell out of my chair the other day when I read a blogger referring to Keira, Kate Hudson, and Mischa Barton as “disgustingly skinny” - only to read on another day where he/she thought Beyonce should try a new career as a linebacker.  Are you freakin’ kidding me?!

So, Keira’s so thin she’s disgusting and Beyonce’s so….what, big??….that she’s a linebacker.  I think the message our society’s sending is that it’s a wee bit szhicophrenic (a state characterized by the coexistence of contradictory or incompatible elements).

Beauty comes in all shapes, all sizes, all weights.  The two ladies you see pictured here are beautiful beyond reason.  As are Mischa Barton, Tyra Banks, Gwen Stefani, Queen Latifah, J Lo, Jessica Simpson, Carmen Electra, Kate Hudson, Angelina Jolie…  Each of them is very beautiful and each wears a different size.  They certainly aren’t gross or disgusting!  I wonder if we even realize what we’re saying half the time??? 

The downside of being hyper-critical and judgemental is that we put more ugliness into our world.  The upside to being more accepting - and to widening the little window that we think beauty should fit through - is that we put more beauty into our world.

The message then changes to:  We’re all beautiful!  I don’t know about you, but I like that message a lot better.  Maybe then we could focus more on what really matters - what’s inside.  That’s where real beauty lies.

Joi