Choices! What will it be? #79

It is great to be involved in the contest called "Choices! What Will It Be? #79" hosted by @patjewell. Today I select the word ‘Body’. The human body is a masterpiece – a creation of ironies and revolutions we are privileged to live in. It also lays down a benchmark for not only our body but also includes the self-feeling, experience, personality, and persona. Each body has its story – the story of our lives, the story of our cultures, the story of life itself. While society romanticizes vanity instead of valuing the physique, I depict the body as powerful endurance and the representation of variety. It is finally time to pay respect and appreciation to our bodies as the fantastic tool and transportation that we have!

To my mind, the body is quite possibly the most interesting and important part of our existence. It is a backdrop to which life’s events are added in order to give a glimpse into the character of the human being. Bodies are not mere shells of bones, muscle and skin that contain our heart and organs, but systems of imaging our current and past selves, feelings and experiences. Each body has a story to tell and is a sum total of each scar, curve, and feature that goes into making up the life story.

We all are born wrapped up in skin and our glorious body is the only way through which we experience life ever since we are born. Importantly, they help us develop relationships; give and receive affection; experience joy in movement; and savor the commonplace wonders of existence. I do not consider our body as shells; rather, I think that it is with our body that we live, that we perceive that we act.

We need to understand that our bodies, in fact, are strong and have the ability to recover from the worst. It is capable of withstanding some pressure, recovery from some form of attack or injury, and exist in a number of conditions. For example try to imagine our body during important milestones in life; childbirth, sickness and healing, or even the process of aging. It all scars you and shapes you; physically and mentally, building a fabric that is the lifetime of the individual in question.

Unfortunately, today’s standards of beauty and thinness are too unattainable, so, in my opinion, we need to change that view. All around, the media feeds us flawless, as if there is only one ‘perfect’ image out there, and it can make anyone feel less than. Perhaps we should stop pretending that it is our goal to be flawless and accept who we are instead. Each body has its own purpose, experiences, ethnicity, and history that will always be special in its own way. It must be noted that I hold the strong opinion that person’s body shape and size should be embraced more as it helps to diversify the human experience.

Perhaps more important, is the ability to be kind to our bodies since they are an essential part of us and impacts mental and emotional health. Recognizing and admiring our bodies make us love ourselves, which creates confidence in us. It allows us to embrace ourselves and embrace life for whoever we are, without limitations from society every time we live every moment. This is all about understanding and accepting that to be beautiful does not depend with the size of our waists, the color of our skin or the length of our hair, but with the kind of persons we are inside out and the kind of persons we allow ourselves to be with other people.

I am one of those people who appreciate their body and never wanted to change anything in it. It may not be as clean as we expect in those societies which consider whatever is perfect for them as good enough for the whole world. It supports my description, my power, and my personality. It is in that respect that I choose to celebrate and respect it as a product of the life that has been lived on it.

And when we esteem our bodies we not only enrich our own lives but also make others turn to their beautiful body as well. It is time to embrace the bodies and everything they offer and symbolize, encouraging everyone to accept, cherish and love the shells we live in.