Where Are We As A Society

Everything is getting tighter, shorter, smaller…

A couple of weeks ago, I was walking down a crowded street at a local festival. There were people of all shapes and sizes walking every which way. Whenever I’m at an event that involves a large crowd, I love to people watch. And I certainly got my fill.

 

There were moms with two or three kids tugging on their arms, dads with tiny tots on their shoulders, older folks ambling along at a slow and steady pace, and stress-free teenagers enjoying the breezy summer night. Admittedly, I’m incredibly fascinated by the variety of the human race.

 

I’m also incredibly disturbed by how short the shorts on teenage girls are these days.

 

Maggie is at an age where all she wants to wear are cute and frilly dresses. I love that she’s expressing herself through her clothes. I love how her eyes light up whenever she slips a dress on and then twirls around in a tight circle with unbridled delight.

 

I don’t love the idea that as she gets older, the clothes she wears will most likely get shorter and tighter and smaller. Which makes me wonder where we are as a society that even preteen girl clothes are made with as little coverage as possible?

 

Maybe it’s because our society holds us to such a high beauty standard none of us could possibly ever live up to. Or, perhaps it’s because the celebrities we look up to are constantly being judged for their looks and their weight.

 

Granted, I’ve noticed this trend before. But now that I have a daughter, it’s in my face even more. And it scares me.

 

I would never want Maggie to feel like she’s less than because she doesn’t have the right nose or fuller cheek bones. I wouldn’t want her to feel like Iggy Azalea, who recently got a nose job and has had other plastic surgery procedures because she admitted that the pressures of being a music star brought out her own insecurities.

 

I’d rather Maggie take my advice and love and accept herself just as she is, that her quality and self-worth is not dependent on how short her shorts are, and that beauty is more than just the clothes she wears or the features on her face.

 

Of course, being her mom, Maggie probably won’t want to take my advice at some point. When that happens, I’d rather her look to stars like Kelly Clarkson or Jennifer Lawrence—celebrities that are who they are and don’t apologize for it.

 

And I’d rather the shorts she wears cover her buttocks before she leaves the house.

 

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