UNZIPPED

Who are you #unzipped? When you take the wrapper off and uncover the prize inside – what do you see?

My boyfriend read my last post and thought I was too negative and harsh on myself; not enough credit was given to the person I’ve become. While that was part of the goal of the article, to say what nobody wants or can bring themselves to admit out loud, he brought up a good point – I tend to focus on my negatives. Not two days later I opened up that pretty pink bubble-wrapped envelope for my me-day glam bag and unwrapped much more than makeup. I unwrapped a new thought process; a new take on things; a new concept. Since my blog is about women empowerment and women supporting each other I decided I couldn’t ignore this – it was time to take off the mask; to think deeply; to do some serious self-reflection. Who am I without the makeup up? Who am I when raw and vulnerable? Who am I #unzipped?

I’m the girl who never leaves the house without makeup on. I put makeup on to make myself feel like the badass I truly am –  a strong woman with flaws. That list of flaws goes from my lightbulb toes to my stretch marks to my cystic acne and everything in-between; so bad that the reflection in the mirror is sometimes painful to look at. Why? Why can’t I see myself the way he sees me? That glam bag marked the start of serious self-reflection. What have I accomplished that makes me great? What makes me beautiful?

This is my success story. I am in my early 20s. I missed the fun-loving, carefree, who-gives-a-fuck period and went straight into adulthood. Why? Because I wanted to. I choose to forgo those selfish ‘learning’ years. I made a choice to jump headfirst into something I knew little about, something I was unprepared for, with no regrets. With that choice, I knew I would forever be different.

Self-reflection can only go so far because it’s biased in one way or another; I will never see myself as I truly am. What I do see? I see a strong woman when I look in the mirror. I see scars of valuable lessons learned. I see muscles that fight their way through anything. I see a brain that is soaking up knowledge every day. I see a heart that loves in its own, unique way. I see me. Maybe not who I really am, maybe not in all the wonderful ways that others view me, but I see enough to know that when I am #unzipped it’s much prettier than makeup. It’s raw and real and beautiful. Like an uncut diamond.

Who are you when you’re #unzipped?