Hey, I hope you guys are staying safe, washing your hands and practicing social distancing. 

Someone said "practice social distancing as much as you practice for your winter concert"

and I......

Can't do that because I didn't practice for my concert this year. 

(I know you didn't either but you sounded good so it's fine, JUST MAKE SURE YOU PRACTICE)

Well, we all know "practice makes perfect" but we all chase this image of perfection until it's mutilated what we see in the mirror. 

Take myself, for example. I wanted a skinny body, and I kept wanting to get skinnier and skinnier. Eventually it went too far and... well, bad things happen to everyone. I'm not an exception.

But that's the thing. We all want something, and it's deadly to want it so much you'll take drastic measure to achieve that goal. 

Now, my motto is, "You only get one body. You should feel comfortable living in it."

But that doesn't mean that you should change yourself to what you think  you'll feel comfortable in. 

A positive self-image shouldn't be created by makeup and plastic surgery. It should be seeing the beauty of yourself and the world around you in it's raw, vulnerable state, and seeing that not everything needs to be flawless to be beautiful. 

Would you rather have a chunky chocolate chip cookie or a smooth chocolate chip cookie?

See, beneath the imperfections, something sweet lies. Flaws aren't all bad. Flaws give you personality. 

And you don't have to see all of this right away. In fact, if you do, I'm gonna need whatever drugs you're on--

KIDDING!

(don't do drugs.

seriously.)

Anyways, building a positive self-image takes time. 

Instead of saying, "I want to be skinny by next week. How can I do that? Starving myself." 

Think, "I want to be skinnier  by next week. I'm going to look up different healthy foods that I can eat and start a workout routine." 

Instead of, "I messed up. I've ruined everything because I can't do anything right."

Think, "I messed up, but everyone makes mistakes. I should calm down and think of a healthy way to get out my emotions before I proceed with trying to fix it." 

And it really isn't easy. I'm going to tell you right now that consistently having a positive self-image is one of the hardest things that you will ever have to do. 

(besides those quizzes that are like, "are you a cat or dog person?" HOW DO I CHOOSE. HOW DO I SAY BOTH. IT'S SO HARD TO DO. PLEASE JUST LET ME LOVE THEM BOTH. DON'T LABEL BECAUSE I'M BETRAYING MY PUPPY FRIENDS IF I CHOOSE CATS AND--)

(you know those ones?)

(it's like "find your soulmate!"

"are you a dog or cat person?"

is my soulmate scooby-doo if i choose dog person? that cat in boots if i choose cat? WHY IS IT NECESSARY?!?!)

You won't see a change right away. You have to work consistently on your thought process. Just like learning a language. 

If you're used to something-- your first language-- it's going to sound hard and daunting to change it. In the beginning, you'll only be able to change small things, like counting to ten or knowing what the word "pasta".

But in the end, you can speak fluently, and you can teach others too as well. 

Having a positive self-image is like that. 

You've been stuck with these feelings for so long, and they seem familiar. You lie in them, numb, because you haven't known anything else besides their mocking, angry, degrading words. 

And it's hard. 

It's hard to change. Because we always want everything to be familiar. Things that are unfamiliar are scary. 

And it's confusing. Changing your thought process can be confusing sometimes. The feelings you have-- the bad ones-- they'll try to pull you back .

"I've broken a rule, but instead of hurting myself over it, I should apologize and work on obeying. If I push myself to get better, I don't have to beat myself up over it because it will happen less and less and become more of a mistake."

But there will always be that voice. 

You've broken the rules because you're a horrible person. You can't listen. You can't obey. You are unable to do anything correctly.

And those words are so sickening and horrific and familiar, and you'll want to go running back.

Don't.

When everything seems hopeless, YOU CAN'T GIVE UP. 

It's a long journey to a positive self-image, and you will lose and gain things.

You can't be afraid.

You can't give up. 

The negative voices in your head want to convince you to stop. You can't listen to them. 

Instead, look in the mirror, into your eyes, and smile. If you're crying, smile. If you want to break down, smile. A smile iis an upside down frown. If you turn it around, it turns your world. It turns the night into day. 

And you really can't see how beautiful your smile is until you see how beautiful you are as a person. 

It's a long journey. It's hard. It's scary. It's confusing. 

But it's beautiful. 

Perfection is loving all of your flaws. It's not erasing them. 

We all chase this perfection until we can't stop to see that perfection is..... painful.

It's hours of sitting and enduring surgeries and changing everything that makes you comfortable. 

Perfection-- that is, being flawless-- isn't something we can achieve. 

It's something we're born with.

In every one of us, there's a heart that shows that we're perfect. 

We're all perfect, whether we think so or not. Chasing perfection isn't necessary. We're already perfect as we are. 

Positive self-image will never be easy to achieve. Hell, I don't think I'm fully there yet!

But the journey is always worth it. Every time. And every bump you hit along the way should remind you to stop and remind yourself that you're perfect just the way you are.

~~~~~

Sooo, how is everyone's day?

:)

:(

I hope everyone and their families are safe! 

Remember, positive self-image isn't all makeup and changing your face. It's seeing everything without the change and loving it. 

I, myself, like chunkier chocolate chip cookies. And I love cats AND dogs the same. 

Also, every time I write "the road to positive self-image" I get this flashbacks to my DND campaign where we were on this road to the castle and my friend Mya drew the forest. Now I can't say "the road to" anything without seeing that image in my head. 

LAST ALSO: what is that cat in boots called? I was thinking and I don't know its name.

Anyways, that's all for now! I hope you all have a great start on your adventure to a positive self-image!!!!!

Huggossssss! 

~Mama Jade

(if you see this i'm addicted to animal crossing and there's nothing you can do to save me.)

(also i wrote this at 12:00 am, don't judge the philosophical therapy-like grammar and stuff i use)