Better to Have a Large Body Than a Small Mind
©Jan Andersen 2002
A number of years ago I was standing in a pub with a friend, having a woman-to-woman chat and a laugh, when I felt someone tap me on my shoulder. I turned around to be greeted by a slightly inebriated lad, whom I would estimate was in his late teens to early twenties. He slurred, "You do have rather a large bottom don't you?", following which he staggered back over to his group of sniggering mates.
In true female style, I perceived this comment to be an insult rather than a compliment and spent the rest of the evening attempting to pull down my top to conceal my voluptuous rear and shuffling around with my back to the walls. No wonder women have been universally linked to that infamous question, "Does my bum look big in this?" And yet why should it be a concern? After all, in my opinion, you don't have to be a certain size, nor should you need to conform to a particular image to be a valid member of society. You don't have to be a size 2 in order to have a wonderful personality, to be talented, productive, successful, to have a great sense of humour, to love, to be compassionate, affectionate and understanding, or to have any other quality that makes a person truly beautiful. Just as importantly, health experts agree that you can be healthy at any size and that it is fitness and not fatness that counts.
Nevertheless, because society has harshly defined the framework for acceptability and gorgeousness, which doesn't seem to include a generous bottom, I began contorting myself into peculiar positions to afford the best view of my rear in the mirror and study what others have had the pleasure of witnessing for years. Two butt cheeks like water-filled balloons.
The media (smug, pot-bellied journalists who brand curvy celebrities as "porky"), camp fashion designers and other supercilious sources, bless them, have helped to breed insecurity and self-abuse by propagating the false but powerful message of, "if you want to be successful and adored, you have to be three inches' wide and possess buttocks between which you could crack a walnut."
The comforting factor is that very few women actually look like the models spread across the glossies, because even the models themselves don't really look like that. They have just spent hours in the makeup department having several layers of cement applied and the photographic results are enhanced and fine-tuned, with any imperfections dexterously airbrushed out before publication.
Many years ago, I remember watching a disturbing episode of the Twilight Zone entitled "The Eye Of The Beholder", where a beautiful girl (at least what we would perceive to be beautiful) lived a world inhabited by people with pig-like faces. They were regarded as normal, whereas she was branded as "ugly" and a "freak", which caused her to embark on a series of surgical operations to change her face so she would fit into their society. When the operations failed, she was banished to an outcast village to live with others of her kind.
The above story may seem extreme and yet many thousands of women and men go under the plastic surgeon's knife each year in a quest to enhance their appearance in some way, by having pieces sliced out, stuffed in, sucked out, pumped up, pinned back and so forth. Many of them do this, I presume, to feel more valued by modern-day humanity and to seek approval from others.
The most wonderful aspect of the human race is that we come in all shapes, sizes and colours and we should therefore celebrate our individuality by making the most of the traits with which we were born. Be proud of the fact that you are unique and that there is nobody on earth quite like you.
Appearance is superficial. It is simply packaging that conceals the true you. As with gifts, people come in fancy wrapping that camouflages a dull interior, or plain wrapping that disguises a vibrant and exciting core. It is up to you to discard the packaging and reveal your true self to the world.
Funny thing is that the following week, upon returning to the bar mentioned at the beginning of this article, the same lad this time very much sober waltzed across
and offered to buy me a drink.
About the Author:
In addition to running Mothers Over 40, Jan Andersen is a Freelance Writer. If you are seeking the expertise of a professional writer, Jan can offer a variety of services, including the editing of personal creative writing pieces, critiquing, commercial copywriting, business writing, technical writing, proofreading, and marketing advice. For further details, or a free quotation, please e-mail Jan on worldwriteruk@hotmail.com
