Of Leopard Print Bathing Suits

Yesterday I bought the most fantastic bathing suit.  It fits perfectly, and it is smokin' hot, like in a busty, leopard print kind of way.  It makes me want to put on really red lipstick and high heels, and maybe one of those '60s head scarves and big, black-framed, movie star sunglasses. It is that awesome.

Just thinking about bathing suits used to make me want to move to an arctic climate. Part of the problem was finding one I liked, but that was often compounded by the fact the I would be wearing the suit, and therefore, by default, I didn't like any of them. Obviously, the real problem was that I didn't like my body.  How tragic!  But for me, now, the most tragic part of this is that I am not alone in my body-hate experience of bathing suit season!

When I came out of the dressing room today, I told the dumbfounded lady at the counter that I LOVED my bathing suit, and couldn't get over how great it looked.  She said that she has never heard anyone say that after trying on a bathing suit.  Ugh!  When I think of all of the women out there trying on bathing suits, and hating themselves, and telling themselves horrible things while looking in the mirror, it makes me so mad!  We all should be able to look at ourselves in the mirror and see the gorgeous, amazing, powerful things about our bodies, instead of the perceived "flaws."  Because our bodies ARE gorgeous and amazing and powerful!  Think of all of the amazing things your body has done for you - even just today! 

In my experience, if we tell ourselves terrible things, we start to believe them, and then we live our lives as if all of the terrible things we tell ourselves are true.  This is a painful cycle, and a difficult habit to break.  It hurts to believe that our bodies are not good enough, and it hurts to live as if there is something wrong with us, that we are damaged, flawed, or worthless.  And it keeps hurting until we say "enough."  Enough bullshit. Enough torture. Enough negative crap.

And when we take the chance, and stand up four ourselves, we find that, "enough" takes on a new life.  I am enough.  My body is enough.  I am good enough to rock a leopard print bathing suit.