Ashley
30 Tuesday Nov 2010
Posted in We Are All Beautiful
30 Tuesday Nov 2010
Posted in We Are All Beautiful
29 Monday Nov 2010
Posted in We Are All Beautiful
When we were in Kauai recently I ran across this shirt in a standard T-shirt shop that was yet another reminder that we all need to have: we are all beautiful. Just as you are, no strings attached, no “when-I-lose-weight”, no “just-Photoshop-it”…YOU are BEAUTIFUL just as YOU ARE.
And as much as this T-shirt was a great reminder to reflect on my own beauty, I have to say it’s wrong. I am (and YOU are) even more beautiful than one of the most beautiful places on earth. My hope this holiday season and the rest of your life is that you would embrace the person that you are, loving and accepting yourself for your unique beauty.
I would encourage you to (if you haven’t already) submit a post for Faces of Beauty. Go ahead and send in a make-up free (or mostly make-up free) photo of yourself along with a paragraph about what you love about yourself to heathersdish [at] gmail [dot] com. All submissions are welcome (as long as they’re appropriate), and I can’t even begin to detail how many lives have been touched because of the courageous women on this blog.
May you always remember that you are incredible, strong, unique, intelligent, and DEFINITELY beautiful just as you are!
25 Thursday Nov 2010
Posted in We Are All Beautiful
Words cannot even begin to express how thankful I am for my life. Sure, there are ups and downs, but this incredible journey that I’ve been blessed with is worth the ride.
I have the most wonderful parents and little sister who raised me with love, patience, joy, humbleness, and grace. They are the reason I am who I am, and for that I am so thankful.
I married the most perfect man for me in the entire world, one who loves me unconditionally, makes me laugh harder than anyone else, and continues to surprise me every day, and for that I am so thankful.
I have the best friends I’ve ever had in my entire life who surround us every day by their love, laughter, guidance, and prayers, and for that I am so thankful.
I have an amazing group of readers, YOU GUYS, and I am so incredibly thankful for you all and the encouragement you provide for me daily.
Most importantly I am so blessed to be a child of God in this world, something that I could never, ever do without. Something that’s more important than butter, sleep, even air. And I could not be more thankful for the sacrifice that He paid so that I could be with Him.
I am very blessed, and for that I am so thankful!
Happy Thanksgiving 2010 everyone, from my family to yours!
24 Wednesday Nov 2010
Posted in We Are All Beautiful
Growing up I was always teased about my weight. I pretended that it didn’t matter and that I wasn’t hurt, but it did and I was. In the past few months I’ve been slowly but surely learning how beautiful and lovable I am. In the past little while God has placed many wonderful people in my life to show me that true beauty isn’t about fitting into a size six or having the perfect body but that true beauty is having an interior light and not being afraid to let it shine. I’m not totally accepting of myself yet and I do still struggle with a low self esteem but I’m learning. It will be a long process because there have been a lot of hurts that I need to work through but with the help of friends I’m learning and I will come to accept myself and my beauty for what it’s worth.
23 Tuesday Nov 2010
Posted in We Are All Beautiful
My smile is beautiful. I love the way I look when I am smiling. It seems I to have the ability to brighten a room with a simple smile and the sound of my giggles. Others seem to take on the smile that I have and it becomes theirs. If only for the time we share the same space. Laughter is contagious but so is smiling in my eyes. I am a constant work in progress but my heart is true and so is my smile. I know I can get through anything in this world as long as I keep the smile on my face and in my heart…
22 Monday Nov 2010
Posted in We Are All Beautiful
19 Friday Nov 2010
Posted in We Are All Beautiful
18 Thursday Nov 2010
Posted in We Are All Beautiful
Growing up with little to no self esteem, I struggled to accept the fact that I was ‘the chubby’ girl; I had gapped front teeth, chipmunk cheeks and an awkward body. As I came into adulthood and my body had matured and I was starting to have some self confidence, the unthinkable happened…I began to lose my hair and was diagnosed with Alopecia, an autoimmune disease where, basically, your body attacks it’s own hair follicles. This resulted in total baldness, all over (Alopecia Areata Univeralis)…imagine that! At the same time, I continued to struggle with my weight going up and down constantly; yet, believe it or not, the weight bothered me more than being bald did. They make really good wigs but you really can’t cover up being fat. After many years I have come to realize that either way I am beautiful, my husband tells me so, my family tells me so and my friends tell me, and I believe them now. My eyes are what I love most and what I get most compliments on.
I have tried to focus on my health this year and have lost a significant amount of weight and have started running. WOW, I still have a hard time thinking that ‘I’m a runner’; I love it and I hope it loves me for many years to come.
As I continue to work on my ‘outer’ self in becoming more fit, I strive to be beautiful on the inside more than anything, because that is undoubtedly what makes a person truly beautiful.
Fat or Fit, with hair or without…I know am beautiful within as well as on the outside.
17 Wednesday Nov 2010
Posted in We Are All Beautiful
I have always been told that I was beautiful. I never really believed. I have come to this realization that I am beautiful on the inside, and out. I know that I am beautiful no matter what my size is. I am on my way to be confident of what I look like. Some days are better than others, and I’m working each day to accept my beauty for who I am.
16 Tuesday Nov 2010
Posted in We Are All Beautiful
I’m beautiful because I say I am.
And I’m always remembering that I’m “fearfully and wonderfully made.”
I love the stories my body tells: bitten nails from too much worrying, the scars on my legs from rough Jamaican childhood playing, little burns here and there on my arms because I am incapable of not burning myself when I cook, my stretch marks remind me of the weight I’ve lost, and my feet are passed down from my mother and her side of the family. It’s all very very beautiful!