We live in a society often defined by outward appearance. In reality, our body is perfect, as it is a manifestation of Spirit.
Sometimes, I have trouble getting my head around that as I see wrinkles and gray hair appearing. And, of course, there are those extra pounds I am carrying around!
I found a very inspiring poem on the subject in Spirituality & Health Magazine.
Here are some excerpts from Pascaline Odogwu article: The First Time I Met My Body and Didn’t Apologize
I don’t remember the exact day. There was no candlelit revelation,
no mirror scene softened by warm morning light.
But I remember this: my hand touched my belly, and once, I didn’t flinch.I didn’t tuck it in.
I didn’t suck it flat.
I didn’t sigh like I was mourning a body that had betrayed me.
For once, I actually felt my belly and looked at it … really looked, and found it cutesy
Like that of a baby.
Round, soft, innocent.
Unlike before, when I’d look at it with so much animosity, wishing it would just go away. …It’s strange how often spirituality wraps itself in shame.
How we’re told, sometimes without words, that to be closer to God,
we must be further from ourselves.
That the body is a problem to be solved,
a craving to be managed.
a weakness we must constantly overcome.
We’re taught to rise above the flesh,
to mute our appetites,
to see softness as sin and punishment as discipline. …I am not always gentle with myself.
There are days I still side-eye the mirror.
Days I skip lunch and call it discipline
Days I forget that softness is not a weakness, but a presence.
But there are more moments now
when I touch my own skin like it belongs to me.
More moments when I choose nourishment, not punishment.
Stillness, not correction.
There are more mornings when I look in the mirror, and instead of critiquing,
I breathe,
and whisper:
Thank you for staying.
Thank you for carrying me this far.Meeting my body was not a ceremony.
It was a quiet surrender.
A sacred reintroduction.
I am no longer waiting for perfection to begin love.
I begin here.
Where I am.And for the first time,
I am not apologizing for it.
A friend recently reminded me that I needed to stop apologizing for not appearing perfect. We are all human with human flaws. Our perfection comes from Spirit. With that, I remember that my body is perfect, too.