Beauty-full Tuesday: Sam of Young People in Love

Pretty may be fragile, but Sam of Young People in Love is unbreakably beautiful.

For me, feeling beautiful comes down to one, simple truth: I can do hard things.

I learned this for myself a few years ago when I went through a divorce...at the same time I was finishing my last year of graduate school...and starting an internship as a therapist...in a jail for boys. Yup, it was hard. Back then, I had a choice to make. I could either meet the challenge, or not. Either way, the challenge wasn't going anywhere. I chose to meet the challenge. And I did it for myself.

There's something about making good, right, albeit very difficult choices that makes you really start to value and love yourself. Like parents tell their kids, “if you work hard and earn it yourself, you’ll appreciate it all the more.” 

Loving myself is something I've earned. Now, my self-image isn't so much tied up in how I look or the clothes I wear. Feeling beautiful is connected to the good choices I have made, am currently making, and will make, no matter how big or small those choices may be.

With self-love comes confidence. A woman who knows her value and loves herself is so much more attractive than just another pretty face. Apparently all that stuff my mom told me during those awkward teenager years about people gravitating more towards someone with self-confidence over good looks is true. And all the while I thought she was just being a good mom trying to make an awkward, shy teen feel a little better about her freckles and fair skin.

So I may forever hate my baby face knees and pumpkin head but, ya know what? I will never, ever tell myself I'm not beautiful, that I'm not worth it. I've worked far too hard for myself and made far too many good choices for myself, to believe that nonsense.