“Just because you are blind, and unable to see my beauty doesn’t mean it does not exist.”

I absolutely love this quote from the hilarious- and beautiful- Margaret Cho. It is a statement for us all to keep close to the surface of our minds at all times.

We are living our lives within a collective consciousness that attempts to put forward the premise that there is only one type of beauty- physical. And that there is only one type of physical beauty- especially if you are female- the one which exists in magazines and the movies.

“It is time for parents to teach young people early on that in diversity there is beauty and there is strength.”

Maya Angelou

We all know that the idea that the definition of beauty can be narrowed to one limited model is completely untrue.

We all know from experience in our own world (not the one created by the media) how ridiculous these notions are, and yet we all allow these false assertions to slip into our psyches.

We have all had days where our own minds judge our bodies, our faces, our physicality and even worse, our beauty, with harsh criticism.

We live in a collective consciousness that encourages us to spend countless amounts of cash in the diet and ‘health’ industry- diet drinks and foods (which let’s face it, are just poison) pills that contain god knows what but definitely not the miracle you are looking for- vast amounts of time going to the gym to work on machines because apparently even exercise needs machines to do it ‘right’, to go to plastic surgeons if our breasts are ‘too small’, or our noses don’t look like the other noses ‘in’ that season, or our feet are ‘too big’, or our bodies are ‘too fat’ or whatever myriad of reasons that has insidiously been shoved into our subconscious minds.

This is NOT normal.

I am not in any way judging anyone who gets plastic surgery or works on their physicality to help themselves feel better- if this helps you feel whole and complete, then that is wonderful and I am happy for you. Truly.

What I am talking about is the impetus to have to change your physicality in the first place. The original seed of worry or insecurity about our bodies that we ALL have. That crazy idea that we have all collectively bought into that we are born somehow inherently lacking.

This is NOT normal. We’ve allowed it to become the norm but it isn’t and most definitely does not need to be.

We have all spent time judging ourselves, and others, harshly and unfairly- and above all FALSELY.

“You are not good enough. You are not pretty enough. You are not skinny enough. You are not curvy enough to be called a real woman. You are not athletic enough. You are not strong enough. You are not big enough to be called a real man….”

It has made us all think to ourselves “I am not enough.”

I say ENOUGH!! This has GOT to stop.

We need to stop judging and bitching, and joining in when others are doing so- or standing by when others are doing so, being complicit. We need to allow ourselves time to change and to come from a place of self-compassion and love but we also need to call ourselves out for not stepping forward and standing up to others, for others and for ourselves.

We need to start changing the stories we tell ourselves and each other. We need to start telling each other how much beauty we can see in each and every human. Because there IS such beauty in all of us.

We need to spend time telling ourselves, every single morning, how beautiful and loved we are. Try this exercise every day for a month and see if it changes your perspective on yourself and those around you:

As soon as you wake up, say (out loud if possible)-

Hello beautiful feet, I love you. Hello beautiful legs, I love you. Hello beautiful thighs, I love you. Hello beautiful stomach, I love you…

Continue all the way up to your beautiful head and then say-

Good morning beautiful body, mind, spirit, I love you all so much and am so grateful to know:

I am not just my body. I am not just my mind. I am not just my spirit and soul.

I am all of these things.

I am beautiful and loved, just as I am.

Write down affirmations relating to love and beauty and stick them up in places you will see them every day. Keep one in your wallet and take it out to read during your work day.

Even on the days where it hurts to say these kind and loving words to yourself because you are feeling the opposite, say them. The old adage of ‘fake it ‘til you make it’ truly does work when it is conscious faking it.

“The appearance of things changes according to the emotions; and thus we see magic and beauty in them, while the magic and beauty are really in ourselves.”

Kahlil Gibran

I hope you are all holding to the light of love and beauty within your everyday lives, allowing your true spirit to shine through and encouraging the world around you to do the same.

We CAN change the collective conscious mind through seeing, acknowledging and feeling the myriad of beauty around and within us. We CAN change this collective conscious mind by being loving to ourselves and loving to others. We are a powerful force when we unite in love!

As The Beatles told us All You Need Is Love:

We are all capable of immeasurable love. We are all truly beautiful. We are all worthy of love from within and from the world around us. Hold these statements close to your heart.

Sending you all infinite love and light as always,

Laura.x

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The picture of Margaret Cho comes from a beautiful website I am delighted to have stumbled upon during an image search: http://www.beautyredefined.net/ I am looking forward to exploring it more!

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=x9_vhYpR9xo