You Are Beautiful

They called me piglet. When you grow up with four brothers and no sisters, life can be interesting. A few years ago, I was lamenting that to my dad.

Dad said, “Why, they thought of you as that cute little Piglet—you know, Winnie-the-Pooh’s friend.”

I chuckled. It had never occurred to me that I was the petite and endearing Piglet. I had always thought I was fat when I was a kid. I can almost guarantee my brothers were more interested in taunting me than in telling me I was cute. Gotta love those guys!

Now that I’m older and a bit wiser, I realize I wasn’t alone in my perceptions. It’s a common malady for young girls and grown-up girls to think they’re fat or ugly or worthless. In fact, Dove (the soap company) is on a mission to help women and girls recognize and appreciate their natural beauty. “You are more beautiful than you think,” says one of their ads.

In a study, they found that 6 out of 10 girls stop doing what they love—ballet, swimming, gymnastics because they don’t feel good about themselves or how they look. I recently watched one of Dove’s thought-provoking videos.

A former forensic artist for the San Jose police department sketched several women based on their own descriptions. Separated by a curtain, he never saw their faces. He drew amazing likenesses simply by asking them questions about their facial features. He did a second sketch by interviewing another person who had gotten to know this woman earlier in the day. There’s a dramatic difference in those two sketches. How others see you compared to your own perception of yourself is remarkable.

What if we could see ourselves not only through another person’s eyes—but through our Creator’s eyes? Growing up, if I had an inkling that I was “fearfully and wonderfully made” as Psalm 139 tells us, or that true beauty comes from “the inner self, the unfading beauty of a gentle and quiet spirit which is of great worth in God’s sight,” as 1 Peter 3 instructs, then I might have been able to see beyond my imperfections. It’s taken me a lifetime to realize I am beautiful in God’s eyes—and to celebrate being myself.

Bucking a culture which values physical beauty is never easy. I’m committed to encouraging every girl and boy who is part of my life. They have infinite value—and they don’t have to wait until they’re adults to figure that out.

Are You Your Own Worst Beauty Critic? @MargaretMcSweeney @DebKalmbach
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