Short and Fat

I remember reading once about a woman who was asked, “What do you know today that you wished you knew years ago?”
I have never forgotten her reply, “I wish that I had known that the body which I hated in my 20’s was going to be the same body I longed for in my 50’s.” That had a huge impact on me. I was in my 30’s at the time and spending a lot of energy feeling bad about my looks. We do that to ourselves. I vowed then and there to stop letting my self image have so much control over me.
Now I am in my 50’s, I wish that I had the body I had in my 30’s but I also realize that in my 80’s I will probably be wishing I had the body I have right now. So I don’t beat myself up over it. Does that mean I won’t be working on the situation? No! It means that I won’t waste my time and energy stressing about it. Sometimes we can be so concerned about how we look that we let go of everything else and let it consume us. This can happen to us whether we are thin or fat or just in between.
I know people of all sizes that have let their weight and looks define who they are. Fat people who hide behind their size and let it stop them from enjoying the physical side of life. I know thin people who are obsessive about what they do or don’t eat and never enjoy any of it.
I try to be more concerned about my health than about my looks. I exercise to be healthy. I eat to be healthy. I have struggled to find that healthy balance in my life but I think I’m there. It feels good to be at a place where I can just accept myself where I am. Finding the healthy, happy medium is what we should all be doing.
Not too long ago I was at a place where a saleslady was trying to assess my size. I blurted out, “Honey, I’m short and fat- got any thing for that here?” She looked shocked.
But I think my favorite thing happened while I was at the zoo with one of my sons and his family. There was a sign explaining about camel’s humps. Apparently, the humps are not full of water as many believe. They are actually full of fat. A full humped camel can go up to 3 months without food. After I shared this info, I slapped my generous backside and stated, “I’m not fat- this is just food storage!!”
To which my son replied, “Gives a whole new meaning to the concept of years supply, doesn’t it?” Yes it does!!
That’s the view from my side of the street, what’s yours?