As a twelve year old, whenever I heard the whole "imperfections make us beautiful"-based line, I used to cringe. I didn't not like it because I was striving to be perfect in every way, but more in that, although I knew I'd never reach "perfection", I liked to believe that it was achievable in some manner.
I used to write little (terrible) stories and the main girl and the main boy were always undeniably perfect. This makes me sad in many ways but it also makes me smile. I'll tell you why. The biggest trait that would make them beautiful would be their generosity and kindness and heart. So despite the fact that they were generically beautiful and all that jazz, the reason why all of the other characters loved them so much was because their attitude, their view of other people was flawless. Now this is perfect.
She left beauty wherever she went. Inspired oh-so-muchly by one of Louise's Motivational Monday posts, this quote and post brings so many thoughts to my mind. What made one of my main characters in one of my stories, Kiara perfect was how she treated people. She was lovely and nice to everyone. She would leave beauty behind her because she didn't judge people and was undeniably nice. This, of course, isn't the only way to have an attitude and a way to be perfect. It could be the way someone would always express disapproval at a nasty comment towards someone or it could be how they leave a conversation, making another, someone not necessarily close to them, feel refreshed, happier. It may be that someone wakes up, despite the rain and the miserableness, and they smile: a new day, they think. Alternatively, they may be quiet, surveying the situation, looking out for anyone in need of a smile. Perfection comes in many different forms.
Something that makes my skin crawl is, alike to many, bullying. Bullying for the way someone is, the way someone looks. All bullying is unacceptable. Here, I have to touch upon people bullying people because they feel or decide that the way someone looks on the outside determines their perfection. It may be cliché, but bullying says only things about the bully rather than the subject. The movement of bullying is "ugly", "gross" and any negative adjective out there. It makes me sick to the stomach, firstly because the initial bullying is disgusting and the fact that it can ruin someone's life from that point onwards. Think about what you say. The way you look does not determine who you are, not in any way, shape or form. You. Are. Beautiful.
It must be noted that I know - I know - it's not easy for people to, despite however amazing "on the inside" to think that it's enough - and it is more than enough. It is too easy to feel like how you look isn't good enough. It seems like second nature. Now, I try so hard to push negative thoughts about how I look away and at the same time, deal with them in some way otherwise I know I'll end up crying and wishing to look like, well, not myself. Instead, I remind myself that it's okay not to be okay with how you look, but it's also okay to smile all the while and forget it. I don't care that my hair isn't in place 24/7 (if ever!), I don't care that my skin's not silky smooth or my clothes don't look quite as right as I first thought. We're all the same.
I'm not sure that I believe perfection does exist or doesn't exist. I'm not sure what I believe but I know you can be your own version of perfect.
Sparkles & Confetti,
The Girl in the Moonlight.
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