Recently, a post about a mom made the rounds on Facebook . This mom said that she lets her kids take her picture whenever they want to and no matter how the picture turns out she compliments it and herself.
I was instantly convicted. What a wonderful idea! What a great gift to give to her kids! What a lesson in positive messages!
I could never do it.
How many pictures have I commented on in a negative way? “Yuck, look how fat I am.” “Yikes, my hair!” Or: “Why didn’t you tell me that outfit looks hideous on me?” How many hundreds of pictures of myself have I deleted immediately?
I struggle with self-esteem issues (don’t we all to some degree?). I tend to look at photos of myself and pick the flaws out. Photographs have a way of shining a light on the parts of me I don’t like. I have worked on this issue for years and have made some headway, but an ugly picture is the last thing I need in my life.
I have friends who have fought this battle and won. They post pictures of themselves without makeup and in less that complimentary situations. I’m so proud of them and even a little jealous. How freeing to be that open and honest. But, I still can’t make that leap myself.
We live in a new time, a time that has never existed before. In my day, we hauled around printed photos of vacations and grandkids to bore our friends with. Back then, we chose who we wanted to share those precious images with. Now, pictures can be put out for the world to see in seconds. And, no matter your privacy settings, when they’re out there, they’re OUT THERE! Forever. So, yes, I’m picky.
I can, however, try to find a compromise. Maybe if I loosen up a little I can be a little more forgiving and a little less critical. Perhaps, I need to lower my expectations and try to look at my pictures with new eyes.
Maybe, I need to look at my pictures with “God eyes”.
Speaking of God, He is the only one who is privy to all my ugly “pictures”. I trust him with my less than perfect parts. I know He will not laugh at my pain. He will just see the beautiful things about his creation.
For now, that is enough of an audience for me.
Read more of Ann’s contributions to allmomdoes here.
