The reason I titled this post as an observation of clothes, is because I think a lot of self-image issues start in the clothing stores. And, more and more lately, this has been brought to my attention. Just within the past month I have found out that American Eagle has made their clothing sizes smaller, so a friend who is much smaller than I now wears a size 14. Which is bologna. She is NOT a size 14, at least not in real people sizes. I was also shown a picture of Victoria's Secret's "plus size" model (who is about the size of my pinky finger). Then today, I came across an article about the store of growing popularity; Brandy Melville. Apparently they only sell size small or "one size fits most" clothing, and have a reputation for telling customers that they aren't allowed to try on clothes because they are "too big" and "will stretch out the clothes." (Disclaimer: I have not experienced this first-hand, just read about it in the article I came across which is available at Huffington Post)
Some of you might shake your heads, maybe give a snort of disapproval and move on. But, you see, this infuriates me. And I am NOT being dramatic about that. Almost nothing gets me as heated as seeing the way these brand name stores shame this generation into starvation.
You see, I was one of those girls who struggled with body image. Looking at my much thinner friends, and especially my much thinner squad mates, I looked at myself and all I could think was "F.A.T." I saw no beauty when I looked in that mirror and I absolutely hated myself. I struggled with jealousy that my friends could be so effortlessly beautiful. I hated the fact that I could eat half of what they ate and gain twice as much weight. And, especially after I joined the cheer squad and just BARELY fit into the extra large uniform, I didn't see any quality about myself other than that I was FAT. I hid my shame behind jokes, because if I could crack the joke first, at least they'd be laughing more WITH me than AT me. I hated that my "huge" butt could only fit into a 10-12. I was convinced I was hideous. Now I look at those pictures and wonder where I got that notion. I looked AWESOME!
I just think, that maybe instead of supporting brand names that tear down girls self-esteem, we need to start supporting the brands that help them accept themselves exactly how they are. One of the reasons I love Old Navy is that their jeans run in sizes that reflect real people. As opposed to say American Eagle, or (although I love this store) Target.
I read a quote the other day that "The girl in the ad, doesn't even look like the girl in the ad." I've seen push for more "realness" to be reflected in our society. But, we as friends and family members need to be careful what we say, because often the smallest of comments can scar for a lifetime. I can still hear every fat joke someone else said about me. Heck, I still remember in FIRST grade when I was gleefully jumping off the playground platform in my dress because I like the way it poofed out, and some girl came up to me and said "You know, you look like a parachute because you're the SIZE of one." Who knows, maybe if we brought our daughters up to believe there's more to a person than the tag on her jeans, and we encouraged people to look beyond the superficial this would be less of an issue. All I really know is that THIS HAS GOT TO STOP.
We as individuals have got to stop commenting on size. We need to stop this constant internet war of posting that "Real men like a curvy woman" versus "This [insert picture of skinny woman] is more attractive than THIS [insert picture of wider woman]" We shouldn't be reduced to our size. So, let's stop encouraging that. God created each and every one of us in HIS OWN IMAGE.
JUST. THE. WAY. WE. ARE.
So, why are we judging that, degrading that, and causing each other to hate that? I, for one, would like to be known for who I am rather than what size jeans I wear. Which is why I make every effort to not judge my fellow sisters in Christ for their size.
Til Next Time,
CrazyGirl♥
