Every child takes lessons they learn from their parents differently. I wanted to share my lessons of strength and empowerment that I learned from mine.
1. Everyone has a different body type.
There is no such thing as a right or wrong way to be built. Skinny doesn’t always mean healthy, as well as larger doesn’t always mean unhealthy. People come in all shapes and sizes and no two people are the same. God created you to be exactly that: you. I was always taught to love the skin I am in.
2. It’s always okay to say no.
There will be many times in your life where you may have to say no, either it be peer pressure or something else. Saying the tiny word, “No” is probably one of the most powerful tools you have. You may have to say it more than one time or louder than your normal inside voice. But, like my parents taught me, it is okay to say no.
3. Trust yourself.
Whether that be with your heart or gut, trust it. Normally it guides you in the right direction. It comes in handy with bad situations, it’s telling you, “Girl, get outta there.” With good situations, it is smiling joyfully.
4. Don’t worry about gossip.
As a teenager or middle-schooler, I used to think everyone was talking about me. Ignore your conscience when it brings that up. Truth is, sometimes someone is judging you for wearing your jeans twice in the same week or for your new haircut. Ignore them. The second truth, sometimes they aren’t because they’re too worried about themselves. My mom always told me, “If they are spreading gossip, obviously they are jealous of you.” And she has never been more right. My advice; ignore them like those dumb ads you see everywhere.
5. Play like a girl.
Who’s to say that there is a difference in playing like a girl and playing like a guy? Play like a girl. Throw like a girl. Hit like a girl. Where I went to high school, guys played on the GIRLS volleyball team and a GIRL played on the football team. Playing like a girl, is just playing. Ignore that and just play. I can be a girl and play just as good, if not better than a guy at something. When someone tells you, “Hey you play like a girl.”, take that as a compliment and keep showing them how amazing it is to be a girl.
6. Be you.
When I first started getting good at softball, I used to tell my dad, “I wanna be as good as Tiffany.”, (My older sister who is awesome at softball.) And he would always respond, “Why can’t you be as good as yourself?”. That would always make me stop and think. Being yourself is awesome. Once your follow your own dreams and feel good in your own skin, that’s when your beauty will really start to come alive. There is no one as good as being you, than, of course, you! I think of this quote every time I hear someone mention be you…
“Today you are You, that is truer than true. There is no one alive who is youer than You!”
HCXO,
Noelle