Like Yourself

Something my yoga instructor, Beth, always says during class is,"Look in the mirror. Like what you see. Like yourself." And it is interesting, because I have always thought Beth was beautiful. And its not just her outward appearance. But you can tell that internally, she is calm and peaceful.

Last night I watched a documentary called America the Beautiful. Obviously this documentary went into what affect magazines and television have on a young girls' perception of herself. But then it explained something I had never thought of. The documentary explained that mostly, little girls get their self-worth from both parents, but self-perception primarily from their mothers. Ordinary little girls grow up thinking that their mothers are beautiful and perfect. But when a woman puts herself down in front of their daughters, the girl decides that she was wrong and maybe her mother isn't beautiful and her mother isn't perfect and therefore, her perception of what is beautiful and perfect was completely false.

I don't ever specifically remember my mother putting down her own body, but somewhere along the way I lost my own perception.

Today I decided I was going to look in the mirror and like what I see. To like my body. So I did. And I smiled at myself and stared at my back for a good long while. I looked at my back and decided that I was proud of my back. Very proud. Proud that it could become strong again, and so happy that it held me together when I absolutely needed it.

Do you like yourself? Do you already like your body?