What Is Beautiful

Being a young lady in today's generation, I have struggled with this subject for some time. It is not until recently that I have started challenging it. The past few years have been nothing but following the styles and trends, trying to "keep up with the Joneses." These trends I have now found are not quite "me," yet I was so fooled into thinking they were....

"If I am going to the gym six days for a week, maintaining a fake tan, fake eyelashes, measuring out my food and sticking to a 'plan,' I will magically feel beautiful and confident — I will look like these Instagram icons that everyone dreams of looking like." Sure, it felt good to get recognition from others for all of this, but why?

Seriously, why is it that women who are maintaining a certain "look" hold something above those who are not? We get complimented for our fake eyelashes and our fake tan, our fake BOOBS even! Who is it that decided looking "this way" is the "way" to look? and why does it take ALL of that to impress them?..and does it really?.... Well, if the person you are trying to impress is only going to like you for maintaining all of this, then why would you want them in your life anyways.

My husband has always told me he finds me the most beautiful in my most natural state, a little bit of mascara and there we go! Yet I was still feeling this self-pressure to follow these trendy looks. So why wasn't his opinion —the love of my life — enough? Why didn't his word alone stop this need to look a certain way?

Well, I will tell you why: it is the result of opening up social media, and the first picture being a half-naked, bronzed, fake-chested woman — and under this picture: all of the likes and comments of idolization. This idolization stems from the result of money-thirsty companies feeding off of us vulnerable women. We idolize these looks — that take loads of money to maintain. These looks that aren't exactly beautiful or natural, and are often detrimental to our health, but are idolized in order for these companies to make money.

Everyone is beautiful in their own way, and the moral of this huge rant is that we shouldn't feel like we have to go through all of this maintenance in order to feel beautiful. It is exhausting(and expensive lol)! Take pride in your appearance, take care of yourself, and add some simple touches to embrace your natural beauty, but don't try to change who you are, or try to look like someone you are not! Life is short. Spend it loving yourself and resonating in YOUR beauty.