I attended classes, listened to and participated in lectures and discussions, saw friends, talked to people, the whole jig.
And I had a few transcending moments.
In my psychology class, we have been talking about all sorts of things and why we do them. We've covered the healthy and the unhealthy. Today, while reviewing for a test, I overheard (and was to a small extent a part of) a shocking conversation.
After finishing, a girl heard someone else (me) review out loud the word "bulimia" and she started telling a story.
She explicitly expressed a desire to be bulimic, but ended with "It doesn't work out for me though, I can't force myself to throw up; I just don't gag." I was appalled and almost verbally expressed the fact, but then she continued:
"Ya, my friend's bulimic. She throws up all the time. Her dentist keeps telling her she's gonna rot out all her teeth." *smiling incredulous half laugh*
the boy she was talking to--to very very much my surprise--didn't even discourage the behavior or tell her she didn't need to, that she was already good enough remarked neutrally:
"You know, I really don't mind throwing up, I do it all the time after conditioning [a heavy form of team exercise]."
I listened intently, completely abashed by what I was hearing...
"So I'm on laxatives right now. My mom wants me to be like 100 lb, so that stinks."
Finally, I couldn't take it anymore, I thought a subtle unbelieving interjection would help them see sense:
"You know, this conversation is kinda sad..."
At which point the girl didn't seem to take any notice but instead she complimented me and went back eventually to her train of thoughts.
THE WORLD IS WRONG.
The current feminist movement too.
Don't get me wrong, I'm still a feminist, I think we all should be.
Feminist, by the way, just means that you believe that men and women should be treated fairly and equally, regardless of gender and that everyone should be afforded equal opportunities.
There is a wonderful sentiment sweeping the world that every woman is beautiful and that every woman is worth it. That everyone deserves love and respect.
THAT'S AWESOME!
The problem is that the message is being a bit messed up in a 'telephone' type of a process.
{Think for a moment (on a wonderfully catchy song that I love) on the lyrics of "All About that Bass" by Meghan Trainor. It's often accepted as a feminist song, but to me, it sounds exactly the opposite...}
Everyone is a human soul. They are all so much deeper than can be easily seen. Everyone deserves respect, life, liberty, love...
and THAT is WHY they are beautiful.
We are beautiful because of what we have inside of us.
Appearances do make impressions and they play a vital part in our lives, but
"clearly--
Fame isn't everything, is it, Mr. Potter?"
~Severus Snape
Life is so much more than it looks to be--in every sense of that phrase. Every life is more than it seems, our life experiences are so much more than they seem...
Don't get too caught up on a bad hair day, or the figure of your shadow, or the measurement of your waist, or the terrible clothes that kid you're sitting by is drowning in.
Life is so much more. Have the courage to look beyond the now.
Also, at this point, I'd like to thank my wonderful mother. I will probably never really know just how much she's influenced me to shelter me from some of the misconceptions of the world. I can only attribute my unique perspective to question things and to observe from every angle to her and her general magnificence.
Moms rule the world.
No comments:
Post a Comment