Prim Rose Fierce
When I was a little girl, I played with Barbies. Bright pink, overly sexualized, Barbies. When I played with makeup, I wondered why it looked different on me compared to other girls. When I watched TV, my favorite shows, Lizzie McGuire, That's So Raven, and even Hannah Montana (bless her heart) , I also found myself looking different than the actresses. Even when I looked through fashion magazines with my mom, I looked at thin, beautiful European women.
So I suppose it is not surprising to say that eventually I figured out what was different. I'm Asian (duh) and almost everyone I grew up admiring in mass media was white. Barbie maybe had like one Asian friend. Same would apply to Lizzie and Raven. Then there was the epiphany that hit me when I realized I had a mono-lid. Not all Asians do, but as you can see, I do.
Now, I suppose you expect me to go on some political rant about race and ethnicity and how we need more diversity in today's media. Well, that's where your wrong. Clearly, people don't respond well to rants, and as you can see, this is not a rant.
This is about self-acceptance and challenging the status quo. Society has already made some pretty bold steps toward acceptance with the passing of gay marriage (hurrayyy!), Emma Watson's He for She movement, and so much more. Welcoming Acceptance is one of the most revolutionary movements we can make as a race of people with flaws and differences.
At some point, we feel the need to overcompensate our appearance. Exhibit A: the pre-teen waiting for her boobs to show up. Exhibit B: photoshopping. Exhibit C: Kylie's lips. At first, it seems like there's nothing wrong with trying to look our best; by putting our best side forward we feel a sense of self-worth. But eventually our obsession with perfection catches up and we can be left feeling inadequate.
This empty feeling that I feel when I'm not good enough. Not pretty enough, not smart enough, not talented enough can easily eat me alive. After all, there will always be someone prettier, smarter, and more talented than the next. Mass media, cosmetics, and other industries banking on our insecurities are eager to sell us commodities that promise happiness. Of course, everyone knows commodities don't buy permanent happiness, so in order to actually obtain happiness and universal acceptance we needed to be a little bit more clever.
Life Lesson #1: Value yourself & be grateful.
Life Lesson #2: Perfection is a mirage.
Life Lesson #3: Aspire to be the role model you always wanted.
I have lots of role models: my parents, professors, friends... all whom bring out the best in in me. As for bloggers, my inspirations are Nicole Warne, Kristina Bazan, and Tavi Gevinson. These hard-working women are all completely unique and are making their own paths in the worlds of fashion, art, and beauty.
Maybe you'll never be the one to change history, but you could be the one who tried. Maybe you'll never be famous, but to some other kid, you could play the hero. It's just like that Robert Frost poem says, take the road less traveled. To Essena O'neill, the brave blogger who revealed the pressures of social media perfection, I adore you. There is a price to pay for quantifying self-worth by numbers.
We live in a world where time is money and numbers reveal half-truths. Unfortunately, we cannot buy more time with the money we made nor can we justify the every decision we make if it's just for the sake of meeting the numbers. Sure, I'm just another Millennial making somewhat obvious observations, and I'm not asking for pity, glory, or fame. Like everyone else in the world, I just want to do what I love, which in this case is blogging. So thank you, dearest readers, for following along so far.
Leave comments down below on new destinations to visit for our upcoming posts!
xx Ella-Kol
