I’ve been drowning.
I’ve been drowning in a sea of other people’s ideas.
I’ve been drowning in a sea of other people’s ideas of what I should be my whole life.
Too fat, too thin, too dumb, too smart, too ugly, but never pretty enough.
Too loud, too quiet, too much too soon but never pretty enough.
Too mean, too passive, too strong, too weak and NEVER. Pretty. Enough.
I’ve been drowning.
I’ve been drowning in a world where my opinions don’t matter and my voice can’t be heard. Can’t? More like won’t. In a world where my gender determines my pay and the color of my skin determines my value. Living in a world where the women who burned their bras and fought for their right to choose no longer have the clout.
I’m drowning.
I’m drowning in a world that advocates Botox over feminism and D cups over equality. And with every passing woman I see with perfectly contoured makeup, I suffocate a little more.
The presence of uniformity and sameness is overbearing and the quality or state of being different and diverse is falling by the wayside. If our variety has no range then we become predictable and I call that conformity.
Black, white, purple, tangerine, ugly, skinny, fat, short, tall, you are all pretty enough. Rich, poor, Muslim, Jewish, you are all pretty enough. Blonde, brunette, lesbian, straight, you are All. Pretty. Enough.
I am every woman and I am drowning.