#shesmyfriend

So ladies, lets be honest.  How many years have we spent hating on our bodies?  How many days, months, times, years, have we looked into the mirror, or looked at that piece of cake, and thought ugh......that's going to my hips?  How many diets have we tried, pills have we taken, professionals have we visited, lotions have we purchased, gyms have we joined all in the hopes of making our bodies a little less likely to hate?  Be honest......how long have you been at war with yourself?

For me?  Its been a while.  20 years?  A bit more?  Ooooooof that's hard to say out loud.  But I said it.  I have spent 20 years of this precious life criticizing and attacking this body of mine.  I'm not always critical, and I have moments of love, but up until recently, I will admit it......I have spent a lot of my days reminding my body of all the ways it isn't measuring up.  So much energy wasted.

Jen Hatmaker wrote a book recently, Fierce, Free and Full of Fire, in which she addresses the self loathing and beauty standards that we as women so often find ourselves wrapped up in.  I have read a lot of self help articles and books, but this one.....it got me.  She broke down the cultural and marketing trap that has an almost 99% effective rate of getting us to hate ourselves and then introduced this idea that maybe we could be free of all of it if we saw all that our body does.....instead of seeing all that out body isn't.  

Everything that you have done is because your body has done it.  When you wake up and see, that's your body.  When you hear the giggles of your children, that's your body.  When you speak the words "I love you" and feel the peace of a hug....that's your body. When you have incredible sex and orgasms.....your body at its finest.  

Your body has learned how to walk so your can go places, it listens so that you can learn.  It feels, and touches, and moves, and breathes.  It changes and adapts, it takes you across finish lines, it supports all your dreams.  It carries the ring your spouse gave you, and bears the enormous task of carrying a child. It bends and breaks, it nurtures and comforts, it gives and gives and gives.   It laughs, and cries, and feels for you. Remember that REALLY bad haircut you had?  Your body took care of that. 

And yet we never seem to love it.  We focus on something that our bodies were never meant to be....culturally perfect. And constantly blame and criticize it for not being so.  It does everything for us......and yet when we look into the mirror we are convinced that it cant get anything right mostly because of its shape.  

I'm a great friend, but I would have walked a LONG time ago from a friendship if I was treated the way I have treated my body in the past. 

What if "it" was a her and we stopped talking ABOUT her, and started being friends WITH her.  What if she was worthy of all the respect and honor and kindness this world can offer simply because she is a friend that has never left your negative nelly, critical self? 

At 37 its time......to stop hating, and start loving this best friend of mine.  I am grateful to and for her.  She has helped me make so many amazing memories.  She made me an IRONMAN, she bore and fed my two beautiful daughters.  She has seen all sides of this globe with me.  She is strong and can stand on her hands.  She is beautiful. All the things I can do are because this best friend of mine does them.

#shesmyfriend

For the month of July I have decided to practice yoga every day and post a yoga pose picture on my instagram with the hashtag above.  It may seem vain and self promoting and to that I say YES.....and it should be.  I am celebrating all the things that this body can do and YOGA has unleashed this incredibleness that is her. 

And she is worth the respect and honor that's due.