An Open Letter to the Ugly Duckling,
We all know the childhood story of the ugly duckling. The duckling who did not look like everyone else. While her sisters had beautiful, bright white feathers, she was born a dark, dirty grey color. She was plumper than the rest and was still growing into her webbed feet. While she had many friends, she often felt all alone. She spent much of her time wondering why she was born the way she was. She would day dream about what it would be like to be a beautiful duckling and feel as though she belonged. She was jealous of her sisters who seemed to be so perfect and wished that one day she would feel normal.
Because the ugly duckling spent most of her time feeling as though she was not good enough, she failed to realize how incredible she really was. She failed to see her kind heart. She failed to see her strong work ethic. She failed to see how genuine she was. She failed to see her extraordinary mind that was filled with creative thoughts. She failed to see how much her family and friends loved her. She failed to appreciate the amazing life she had been given. She failed to see what a good friend she was, a friend who would give up anything to be there for someone else. She failed to see her bravery. She failed to see her spunky personality and attitude. She failed to see what an incredible duckling she was, all because the reflection that looked back at her was different than the one she thought she needed to be happy.
We all are the ugly duckling. Each of us struggle with feeling as though we are not good enough because we don’t fit into the dress size we think we should. Or because we have blemishes on our faces. Or because we don’t have a boyfriend. Or because our skin isn’t perfectly tan. No matter what it is, each of us feel like an ugly duckling. But I’m here to say that you’re not. We all have something important to say and we all have a purpose. And who we are as women should not be controlled by a number on a scale, a boy in a frat, the number of Instagram followers we have, or anything of the sort because these things do not define who we are. We each have something special to offer the world and it would be ridiculous of us to spend our time tearing ourselves apart instead of building ourselves up.
So the next time you are having an “ugly duckling day”, remind yourself that you don’t have to wear the perfect outfit, or have the perfect curls, or land the perfect guy to be beautiful. You are beautiful simply because you are you. And it is only when you truly believe this that your transform from the ugly duckling you think you are, into the beautiful swan that you have always been.