Morning Folks 04 07 06

Ed's brother, Bob, sent this to link to me today.

http://www.goodolddogs.com/older.html

I probably should have only sent this on to people who I think will appreciate it, people about my age. And although it was supposed to be just comical, I just couldn't take my eyes off the picture and the message. (You probably won't want to open this picture at work, by the way. It isn't in bad taste or anything, but there is nudity.)

So, go to this link, copy and paste in your browser, then come back here. The song is funny, so turn up your speakers.

The caption on the picture: "The older we get the less concerned we are with appearances." I want to know how much older do I have to get before this happens?! Are you already there? Probably more men are than women.

Do we ever see 'nudity' that isn't a perfect airbrushed body? Probably not unless you are a member of a gym and spend time in a locker room. In fact I remember first thinking that maybe I wasn't that different from other women only a couple of years ago after having gone to Ed's gym one day and seen a very immodest woman in the locker room. We are all different shapes and ages and we should be accepting of that. But, when do most of us have a chance to see our peers naked? And if we never see that, how can we know what is "normal"? How can we accept who we are and how we look?

I started to realize then how shielded I have been from reality. It is amazing the influence that the media has on us in defining standards. Recently more movies, TV shows and commercials are including people with rounder, saggier shapes and even some with lined faces. And they aren't the comic relief all the time anymore either. No wonder so many women have body image issues. We never see the real people naked!

So, yesterday this blog was about my son turning 30 and that means I can no longer pretend to be 35. So, today's little link from Bob, for me, is a reality check that might just lead to self-acceptance. Bob is probably thinking, "Suzanne, lighten up! It was supposed to be funny!" And he would be right.

The link was really funny but it also had a great message. Don't worry, I am not advocating getting naked, just getting real. Thanks, Bob!

Have a great day.
Love, Suz