In todays world, we are all faced with a barrage of images. Television, magazines and the internet are all full of what we are told and taught to believe is beautiful. Women who are so thin they seem to have not eaten in weeks, and men with bodies so riddled with extreme musculature it looks like they could snap from the tension. Walking around day to day, even in southern california, the majority of people do not look like these images we are taught to live up to. I say yes to that! In a country where we have extremely high rates of eating disorders, and extremely high rates of obesity, i wonder where is the elusive balance we all seek? To what lengths are we willing to go to look ‘perfect’ and on the opposite end how far are we willing to go to rebel against the supposed idea of perfection. when it all comes down to it, our outside will never match our inside unless we start by loving ourself as we are. Fat, thin, ugly, pretty, these are just words, adjectives but just the simple utterance of them will send many people reeling in their memories of how someone told them they were one of the above or at some point maybe all of the above. I can personally recalled having all of those adjectives used to describe me at some point in my life all the way back to childhood. Now i realize it is only how i see myself that matters. Finding solace in the fact that my actions are generous, thoughtful and i am truthful to all, is priceless to me. Our bodies are ever changing and so are fads dictated by the media. in the 17th century it used to be considered beautiful for women to have small breasts and a convex stomach, whereas now it is large breasts and a concave stomach. Things change move and grow, for us each individually and our race as a whole. Losing yourself in the momentary fad will almost always prove to be utterly disappointing. Do you know what makes you happy as an individual? Not just ok, but really truly happy? Most of us do not know, and for most it takes time to find this out. It took me many years to connect with what really makes me happy. Yes i like to exercise and eat healthy as well as take appropriate supplements. Yes i like to dye my hair and i have tattoos. Yes i like fashion, but i also like to not wear makeup all the time, and thats ok for me. What would people think if they saw that my skin was less than airbrushed perfect, I used to think. Then i realized, it doesnt matter. Yes our outward expression can define us, but does our outward appearance have to define us? It all seems way to much to live up too. Being ok with who you are is a most profound experience. An experience not enough of us have been able to enjoy. I would like to share a couple of things i do to help me see myself as and feel beautiful. When i look at myself in the mirror, i look at my body as a whole and connect the parts i most enjoy to all other parts allowing the happy feeling i feel to spread to the parts i may want to change in some way. Also, i try to visualize my body in what I feel is its perfect state of inner and outer beauty, as well as inner and outer health. i feel personal health is a great way to start seeing yourself as beautiful from the inside out. Mantras have also been very helpful for me. Some examples are: I am beautiful, I love myself, I am ok as I am, I am perfect in everyway, I am divine! When you speak a mantra, say it as if you believe it to be true already, with emotional emphasis in your voice. Say it loud! Say it proud! Another technique i have used and really enjoy, is to make a list of all the things you find beautiful about yourself, not just physical but in all ways. Read this list whenever you are doubting yourself and re-read often. We are truly the creators of our life! Create the beauty you wish to see in yourself as well as the world around you. As we see ourselves as more beautiful, it will radiate from us and we will start to see the whole world as beautiful and filled with joyous potentials that are limitless! As shakespeare wrote in hamlet; ‘ to thine own self be true’!