Bodies come in all shapes and sizes

Here is shocking news - read carefully. Everybody does NOT have to be stick-thin to be attractive. A person can be perfectly appealing and not look like an underfed scarecrow.

I saw an ad on television the other day. It asked, "Have you ever considered plastic surgery?"

Of course, I have considered it. It would be wonderful to have someone re-sculpt my body so it would look like it did when I was 20. It would be a lot easier to find clothes that fit if I were the size I used to be.

It would be of greater benefit if they could restore that same body to the condition it was in when I was 20; no aches, no odd twinges; no wondering, "what else can I pick up when I lean over to pick up my shoes?"

And the optimism! At 20, everything was possible. Now I'm running out of energy. It's all I can do to get a garden put out every year, let alone have time left over to save the world, climb a mountain, become a romance writer or any number of other aspirations.

The thing is, I have earned every extra pound, every sag, every wrinkle and defect. This body tells the story of my life. I bet yours does, too.

Even more shocking, people find different shapes more attractive than sameness. Some people like skinny mates, some people prefer more cuddly ones. Some people like curves, some don't. Many of us really don't care as long as they meet other, more important, criteria.

We may like to look at a so-called "perfect" body but most of us don't want to live with someone who is so obsessed with appearance that they will do whatever it takes to maintain that look. My first thought upon seeing an overly muscular man is, "How many hours did it take to achieve that look and how much time do you spend maintaining it?"

One of my sisters-in-law has begun a rigid diet and exercise program. She has lost nine pounds already. I don't understand this. She is tall and willowy and has no need to lose any weight at all.

My other sister-in-law has had a life-long obsession with her weight. She is also thin. She once ended up in the hospital because she had been eating nothing but salads. I wonder if maintaining a svelte figure is worth it.

My other brother's girlfriend is not the least bit tiny. He thinks she is beautiful. Most of his girlfriends have been on the larger side. Their weight is not important to him.

Do we women really believe that our men are that shallow? Do we think our bodies are the only things we have of value?

Any man (or woman) worth sharing our lives with will see beyond our shape to our souls. No body stays the same through the years. We grow. We change. Scars appear as a testament to survival.

Those who love us will appreciate us for who we are, no matter what we look like. A male co-worker once told me, "I wish women could see themselves as the men who love them do..." Then they would realize how beautiful they really are.

This is the same guy who bemoaned what time had done to his wife's body. He still finds her wildly attractive and appealing. I'm sure she finds him just as appealing even though he has acquired more of a "cuddly" build than he had when he married her.

Our souls are more important than our outward appearance. Anyone of value will realize this. Our outward appearance will change with time, no matter how carefully we watch our diets or how much exercise we do.

Maybe we should all strive to see ourselves as those who love us do.[[In-content Ad]]