Beauty standards - Chronicle
Ever since I was very young, everything in my life has been about beauty. From the day I was born my appearance has been judged and people around me have always had something to say about what I look like. Cute, pretty, ugly, tall, skinny, gorgeous, sexy, flat, beautiful and so on, the list goes on forever.
Did I ever care about these words? Yes, of course I did. When I was younger the only thing people said about me was "cute". I have heard that word so many times since, and I actually like it. When I was a newborn I didn't have any talents. I wasn't a good daughter or a good friend, the only thing I could do was lie there, being cute. So when people wanted to be nice to me or to my parents, cute was the answer. And I do the exact same thing when I see babies, so I would be a hypocrite saying that I don't like the word.
I actually have a pretty good confidence now, and I do think I am beautiful. I have eyes, lips, a nose, and body that I can move, a bum to sit on and skin thick enough to keep me warm. I am pretty satisfied actually, I can sing and dance and laugh and see and hear. My body functions are normal, and I am so thankful that they are. Just think about that. Think about every amazing thing that your body can do. Your legs let you dance, run, jump, walk and kick. But you hate them because they don't look the way you want them to? Some people don't even have legs, and I think they would enjoy having legs so much more than you do whatever they looked like.
I think confidence comes from the inside. I have been made fun of for not having big breasts or a big round butt, I have been called ugly and had my skin made fun of. I have been bullied for being tall and "too skinny" for years. And people have teased me about my skin color too. I have tried so hard to make them like me. To make them say that I am pretty enough. Push up bras, hiding my butt under clothing, tanning and using makeup to hide the ugly. But people still called me names. Nothing worked. Finally I realized that the most important thing is that I love my self. If I don't, I will never be happy. And I want to be happy, I want it so bad. And I can honestly say that I don't care at all what people think of me anymore. And it is so wonderful. I feel so free.
I love long hair, and I think dark blonde and brown looks the best on me - so that's how I'm going to have my hair. I like fit, healthy bodies so I'm working out more often and hopefully I'll get there. I love my body, I just want to be stronger and healthier. I work out because I love myself, not because I hate myself. I have also gotten used to being pale. I was born as a Caucasian, so my skin is naturally white. When I'm outdoors in the summer time, I get a slightly darker skin tone, but I'm not going to force it. I hate sunburns and I don't want to get cancer, so I'm fine with being pale. And lastly, my bone structure, my face features and my height are some of the things I can't change. So I have accepted them, and when I have done so it is so much easier for others too.
I still love makeup though, because it is art. It is a way of expressing yourself, and transforming yourself with makeup can be the exact same thing as putting on a Halloween costume. It is fun. But I still love my naked face, and that's the most important thing ever.
I did this really interesting thing once, I photoshopped a picture of myself to look perfect. But instead it just looked wierd. It looked fake, and nothing like me. Like some perfect alien or something. Everything I didn't like about myself were things that made me, me. And now I finally know that I'm perfect just the way I am. I love the natural me.
You can do whatever you want. Do a nose job, a boob job, wear hair extentions, use botox, wear false eyelashes, fake nails and so much makeup that your skin suffocates. But know that when you do that, and try so hard to look like the models in the magazines, everything that was unique and interesting about you is gone. It is hidden underneath all that fake. Some people want it though, they want to look like barbies. But there are millions of Barbie's in the world, so you would just be one of them.
I would much rather just be myself. The one and only, the original.
Darker skin, bigger eyes, bigger lips, skinnier face, smaller nose, blue eyes, smaller ears.
I've wanted to change these things all my life, but now that I have seen what I look like without my imperfections I actually miss them. I look kind of scary in the picture to the right.
Jennifer Johansson stylist14
Did I ever care about these words? Yes, of course I did. When I was younger the only thing people said about me was "cute". I have heard that word so many times since, and I actually like it. When I was a newborn I didn't have any talents. I wasn't a good daughter or a good friend, the only thing I could do was lie there, being cute. So when people wanted to be nice to me or to my parents, cute was the answer. And I do the exact same thing when I see babies, so I would be a hypocrite saying that I don't like the word.
I actually have a pretty good confidence now, and I do think I am beautiful. I have eyes, lips, a nose, and body that I can move, a bum to sit on and skin thick enough to keep me warm. I am pretty satisfied actually, I can sing and dance and laugh and see and hear. My body functions are normal, and I am so thankful that they are. Just think about that. Think about every amazing thing that your body can do. Your legs let you dance, run, jump, walk and kick. But you hate them because they don't look the way you want them to? Some people don't even have legs, and I think they would enjoy having legs so much more than you do whatever they looked like.
I think confidence comes from the inside. I have been made fun of for not having big breasts or a big round butt, I have been called ugly and had my skin made fun of. I have been bullied for being tall and "too skinny" for years. And people have teased me about my skin color too. I have tried so hard to make them like me. To make them say that I am pretty enough. Push up bras, hiding my butt under clothing, tanning and using makeup to hide the ugly. But people still called me names. Nothing worked. Finally I realized that the most important thing is that I love my self. If I don't, I will never be happy. And I want to be happy, I want it so bad. And I can honestly say that I don't care at all what people think of me anymore. And it is so wonderful. I feel so free.
I love long hair, and I think dark blonde and brown looks the best on me - so that's how I'm going to have my hair. I like fit, healthy bodies so I'm working out more often and hopefully I'll get there. I love my body, I just want to be stronger and healthier. I work out because I love myself, not because I hate myself. I have also gotten used to being pale. I was born as a Caucasian, so my skin is naturally white. When I'm outdoors in the summer time, I get a slightly darker skin tone, but I'm not going to force it. I hate sunburns and I don't want to get cancer, so I'm fine with being pale. And lastly, my bone structure, my face features and my height are some of the things I can't change. So I have accepted them, and when I have done so it is so much easier for others too.
I still love makeup though, because it is art. It is a way of expressing yourself, and transforming yourself with makeup can be the exact same thing as putting on a Halloween costume. It is fun. But I still love my naked face, and that's the most important thing ever.
I did this really interesting thing once, I photoshopped a picture of myself to look perfect. But instead it just looked wierd. It looked fake, and nothing like me. Like some perfect alien or something. Everything I didn't like about myself were things that made me, me. And now I finally know that I'm perfect just the way I am. I love the natural me.
You can do whatever you want. Do a nose job, a boob job, wear hair extentions, use botox, wear false eyelashes, fake nails and so much makeup that your skin suffocates. But know that when you do that, and try so hard to look like the models in the magazines, everything that was unique and interesting about you is gone. It is hidden underneath all that fake. Some people want it though, they want to look like barbies. But there are millions of Barbie's in the world, so you would just be one of them.
I would much rather just be myself. The one and only, the original.
Darker skin, bigger eyes, bigger lips, skinnier face, smaller nose, blue eyes, smaller ears.
I've wanted to change these things all my life, but now that I have seen what I look like without my imperfections I actually miss them. I look kind of scary in the picture to the right.
Jennifer Johansson stylist14
