Most of us have things about ourselves that we don’t like.  Things we wish we could change.

We wish we were

• taller
• shorter
• thinner
• fatter (does anyone say that?)

We wish we had

• brown hair
• black hair
• perfect skin
• brown skin
• pale skin

And on it goes.  You get the idea. Society conditions us to believe that we need to look perfect.  And if you wonder what that looks like, glance through any pop culture magazine, especially one geared towards young women or men, and you will get the idea real quick.  And if I were to ask you what perfection looks like for you, you have ideas of what that is and probably what you would change if you could achieve that.

The average woman in the US will spend nearly $4,000/ year on her appearance, not including wardrobe and accessories.  The average man will spend nearly $3,000/ year.  When broken down, at least 25% of the total is spent on the face alone to manage imperfections as well as people’s perceptions of us.

Don’t get me wrong.  It’s not a bad thing to care about your image and your appearance.  I am simply suggesting that if we can learn to embrace our imperfections, perhaps we won’t feel the need to spend so much time and energy on covering up, concealing and hiding the most beautiful and unique parts of ourselves.

Imagine how liberating that is.

Recently, a friend on Facebook posted this:

I used to know a gal in college.  She was drop dead beautiful, strong and sweet.  She was perfect except for one thing.  She had a long scar on her face from a car wreck.

Years later, I got a chance to talk to her. She was happily married, and leading a truly joyful life.

She said, “This scar made me strong.  This scar, in a world that celebrates beauty, kept me humble.  I would not change it or fix it for anything in the world. My husband adores me for the real me. My scar has become my greatest blessing.”

This person gets it.  Rather than hiding, covering, and concealing, she allows a scar on her face to make her a better person.

Growing up, I had more than a cute smattering of freckles.  I had a lot of freckles.  And still do. As hard as my dear mother tried to convince me otherwise, I believed my freckles were a disadvantage. I spent too many years trying to hide and cover-up.  I couldn’t embrace what I thought were my imperfections.  Unfortunately, it took me a long time to learn to be good in my skin, literally.

All of my freckles were missed reminders of what really matters.  I get it now.  I since learned how to redefine what I thought was imperfect about myself to serve as a reminder of something profoundly true of all of us.  And that is this:

[bctt tweet=”Your imperfection is a reminder that you are unique, beautiful, and one of a kind. The world doesn’t need another perfect person.  It needs you.  Let your imperfection be a reminder you were never meant to be like everyone else.” username=”viaMarbleTracy”]

How about you?  Is there something about yourself you dislike?  Do you see it as the gift it is yet?

 

“There is a kind of beauty in imperfection.”  Conrad Hall