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I worry too much. Worry has been a major part of my life as long as I can remember. Little kids aren't supposed to worry, but I did. Especially when I was in the 3rd grade and I first began to realize that there were cliques. I went to a small Catholic grade school where we were with the same classmates from grades 1-5. I knew these people, and some part of me thought that because I knew them, they were supposed to be nice to me. When I found out that this wasn't the case, I was devastated. What made me so hard to like? I was a nice person who never had anything bad to say about anyone. I was upbeat, courteous, polite, and friendly. I had a flaw though. A flaw that was obvious to anyone with eyes. I was fat. I've always been fat and probably always will be fat. Did you ever wonder why it was always the fat kid in the class that got picked on and left out of cliques? The answer is pretty simple. Our society teaches children that fat is ugly. They are bombarded with messages from the media that fat is bad and being fat is disgusting. Some children don't get corrupted by such messages because they have other role models to learn their values from, such as their parents. Unfortunately, even parents are guilty of calling someone fat, or asking if they look fat in a certain outfit, or saying aloud that if they eat that piece of cheesecake they'll get fat. All of these messages tell kids that fat is bad. As a result they think that it's ok to ostracize anyone who fits their idea of fat. Not only is it ok to ignore them, but it's ok to point them out and state the obvious to them by calling them fat as if they have an incurable disease. I agree that fat isn't really a good thing. It is unhealthy to be overweight, however, is it healthy to allow our children to believe that fat people are somehow worth less than thin people? I don't care how skinny you are right now, everyone is capable of becoming fat. As we get older, our metabolisms slow down, we move less, and sometimes our thyroids even turn against us. This all contributes to weight gain along with the ease and convenience of fast food restaurants peddling high fat, super size meals. I do not blame anyone for the fact that I am fat. I've come to accept that this is the way I am. What I will not accept is that being fat means that I am less of a person than someone thin. This is grossly untrue although it is a popular view. I believe that it is the responsibility of adults to teach children to be kind to everyone. This means that regardless of race, creed, age, disabilities, sexual preference, nationality, height, or weight, we all are created equal. That's part of what our country was based on and I still believe that it's what holds this country together. Hatred has no place in our lives. Hate breeds hate. If you teach your children that there are people in this world that are beneath them for any of the above mentioned reasons, you are spreading a disease. A disease that kills something within each of us.... the ability to make our own choices about people based on the individual as a whole. |
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