Sunday, July 4, 2010

[life] Why I'm Great

Self esteem is slowly becoming the deciding factor in a kid's and/or teen's personality. If you are that unaware to ask why, then you simply need to look in a magazine, billboard, or music to discover your answer. Although I am a diehard fan of Vogue and Teen Vogue, I wonder what effect these beauty and style sections have on girls (or boys) who don't have an exceptionally high confidence. And don't even get me started on the ads. Is it any wonder that even the models nowadays are pressured to go from size 2 to a size 0 just to book jobs? Are you suprised that kids are feeling pressured, not just by their friends, but by the world around them to do dangerous and risque things? This is affecting more than the latter end of Generation Y, this is affecting all of us. Why is it that many ads I watch on TV geared towards the Baby Boomer generation and beyond are either power tools (for men), skin firming/ age-reducing/ pore-minimizing cream (for women), or Depends (for both). Is this what today's advertisers think of that generation? And do said advertisers expect teenagers and young adults to look like models from Abercrombie & Fitch, talk like either Roscoe Dash or a kid from High School Musical, and act like the characters on Degrassi? And why do older generations refuse to call radio songs "real music" (besides the fact that they grew up on a different sound)? Are females only trophies or worth the sex? And does every new rap artist have to be introduced by either a dance or clever lyrics about their salaries (when I know good and well those artists aren't making enough money for a toilet to shit in, let alone to have a Porshe)? Who are we kidding?

Everybody is different, that's what makes everyone unique. No two people are exactly the same in every way, and that makes us special. These are the cliches we are taught by our parents until about the age of 5. Then we get into school where the pushiest people get to be first in line for snack or the whiniest kids get special attention from the teacher. I am not questioning why this happens, I'm dealing with the fact that life isn't fair. And it isn't fair that advertising and society get to tell us who to be. The saddest part of it all is that too many young people swallow that like it's the truth and become the same robots who are directing them to do it. The cycle continues because people don't unite to reject it.

So now to why I'm great. To be succinct, I am great because I am me. I am unapologetic about my successes or failures because they make me who I am. I don't regret. I adamantly oppose a majority of things that occur where I live simply because I feel like it.  I am great when I'm happy, sad, angry, or all of the above. You could be too, if you believed in who you are, and not who people tell you to be. Because what do they know about anything, anyway?

Peace and be wild! Love, Camille

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