They say beauty is in the eye of the beholder. But shouldn’t we be teaching our children that real beauty is about loving YOU?
I want my boys to understand not all people look like the people you see in magazines, on billboards, and in movies.
I want them to know that sometimes people have lumps and bumps.
That we come in all shapes and sizes and that ‘perfect’ isn’t necessarily what society currently shows us it is. I want them to know that it’s ok to love how you look. To make the best of what you have and to not feel pressured to look a certain way.
So I let them see me naked. A LOT!
Thing is, I don’t love how my body looks all of the time, but I don’t want them to know that. I don’t want them to hear me call myself fat, or say I don’t look pretty. I want them to learn to see the beauty in everybody. My 3-year-old has THE BEST hair you’ll ever see. I want him to be proud of his crazy beautiful blond afro. My 5-year-old has the teeniest, most perfect face and I want him to love that he’s so perfectly formed.
How do our children learn the importance of loving their bodies if nobody teaches them we can love how we look, no matter how against ‘the norm’ it might be?
Recently a child in a local park told my son he was stupid. I guess that’s just children bantering really, but it’s a word I hate to hear. My awesome, self-confident, crazy little love replied ‘I’m not stupid, I’m Arlo and I’m beautiful’, and with that, he walked away and continued playing with his brother.
Beauty though is not just something on the outside. Children need to be taught that beauty can (and should!) be on the inside too. However that’s something I am saving for another post, so you’ll have to wait!
How do you teach your children about REAL beauty?
