Dove has recently come out with a new series for their Real Beauty campaign. And to be truthful, I am amazed at the honest vulnerability of these women.

 

We are our harshest critics. Only 4 percent of women believe they are beautiful. So what does this mean for our children? Not just our daughters, this applies to our sons as well. I see the effects years os this in my husband and myself.

How do you teach your children to see themselves in truth and not through the eyes of society? And how do we do this when we cannot see ourselves this way?

It seems an impossible task. In some ways it is.
The way to change this is to first look at ourselves. How do you feel about who you are? What your body looks like? I’m betting the first things you think of are negatives. I know that when I look in the mirror I can find the negatives that no one else sees. The miniature wrinkles starting around my eyes, the size of my pores, the shape of my eyebrows… the list can go on and on. But there are positives too. I like the color of my eyes and the color of my hair. Focus on the positives, find the things you do like. Each day look for something new. Remember that we are “fearfully and wonderfully made.” God has taken great care with each of us.

There are so many sayings like “beauty is only skin deep” and “it’s what’s on the inside that counts” and while those are true, they don’t always help you when what you are really upset about is on the outside. Only 4% of women think they are beautiful, but how many other women do you think are beautiful? Probably many many. I can always find a reason why a friend of mine looks nice or is beautiful. But that never extends to myself.

Changing the example you leave will drastically change your child’s outlook of who they are. We are their earliest role models. We can’t control what happens out in society, but you can change the way you react to it. You can teach your children better ways to handle it.

If you are a parent of a daughter I highly recommend the book “Your Daughter Needs a Hero” by Maria Furlough*. I recently read this book and my eyes were opened. There is so much influence that society has on our children and we can be the difference that they see.

Beauty should be a source of confidence, not anxiety.

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*I was provided this book by my church solely for the purpose of reading and becoming a better parent.