A letter from August 15th, 2020

This is a reminder for the person who has never fit into society's standards We are writing this letter because we are insecure because we feel that since we don't act, dress, or even fit into society's standards. We have never been the white girl that everyone seems to want to be, or the barbie girl like everyone else, no we were the tanned, curvy Latina who wasn't afraid of her body or what her culture represented, until the standards of what everyone wanted to have taken away your happiness. Never once in my life did I think that being the "bigger" friend would be a bad thing, I was always told I gave the best hugs and it felt like I had pillows on me and that is why my so-called "friends" loved to give me hugs. When did being healthy and not looking like a stick or even a Barbie doll turn into not being beautiful? When did having acne on your face turn into an ugly thing, I am not going to apologize that my body is changing and I have so many hormones running through my body and my skin is oily there is nothing I can do about that. What happened to the saying "everyone is different" or "not everyone is the same" but now in today's standards you are expected to dress a certain way and not dressing like that is what gets you looked at as weird or even as the outcast. For once in my life I just wish to be happy about the body I was put in and not constantly want to work out or starve myself because I don't see a beautiful person in the mirror because I have a little flab in places that most other people don't. For once in my life, I don't want to feel horrible about wanting to show my body off and then getting called names such as "****" or having comments of "should someone of your size be wearing that" For once in my life can these insecurities just go away? The whole purpose of this letter is to remind my future self of what we have gone through and never let anyone change you because you feel pressured by your mind to do so or you have so many comments from people telling you to change, no don't do it. Remember everything we went through to be confident in our beautiful body that keeps us moving every day and supports you no matter what. So I ask the person I have become in the 5 years since writing this letter, please read this and put on the outfit that makes you feel like a badass, date who the **** you want, do whatever you want just don't let society change you into another person who felt the need to fit in as you did. You will find people who are just like you so don't worry about what they have to say now or what they have said you're a badass and remember that. We have worked so hard on becoming confident with ourselves don't let anything ruin that. remember where you got those curves from and the history behind them, remember that the way you dress is just a way to express you and remember that just because you have acne doesn't mean you need to hide it, let it be free and let it show people how confident you are. We are beautiful and we know it.