It is because of THIS:
Kidding! No actually, I’m not. I wish it were a joke, but unfortunately I am very serious. I honestly don’t think I would have had much to write about if this little blurb said, “Carpe Snackem! Seize the day and spare your heart from prematurely deteriorating!” or “Carpe Snackem! Seize the day and spare your arteries!” or “Carpe Snackem! Seize the day and spare your wallet from mountainous doctor’s bills!” But nooooooooooooooo. Spare your thighs. NOW, this is why I had PLENTY to write about.
The fact of the matter is that this culture, intentionally or unintentionally, has declared war on the hearts of adolescent girls. They are so young, simply trying to survive in an existence where their body is changing, their emotions are flaring, and kids are downright mean. They are bombarded with messages emphasizing physical perfection. Magazines, movies, billboards, their snacks for goodness sakes all scream “BEEEEEEEE SKINNNNNNY!!!” News flash, we were not all born to be skinny.
Back to the original question, “Why did I write this book?” I wrote this book with the hope and prayer that parents would armor up. That the home would become a place that is quiet from outside pressures of looking a certain way and a place where physical beauty is de-emphasized. Parents might not be able to undo all that is happening to their daughters, but they surely can understand it and try to fight against it.
Why fight? What’s so bad about wanting to look good anyway? Well, looking good doesn’t have to be bad. As long as we remember that “looking good” is not a one size fits all. My followup to that question is this, “Why does the emphasis have to be on looking good? Why can’t it be on being healthy?” The end physical result ends up the same, but the heart result along the way is much less demeaning. I believe there is a huge difference and most young ladies do not even think or care about actually being healthy. In fact, most of the things I did as a teenager to look good were anything but healthy.
I realize this is an uphill climb, but I firmly believe parents are at the bottom of that hill. We only have our kids in our walls for a limited amount of years. I may fail miserably. I may fight everyday and my daughter might still look in the mirror and think she is fat. But at the end of the day I will be at peace knowing that I tried my best to take some of the pain away that I KNOW comes with being a teenager daughter.
So here’s to Carpe Snacken! Seize the day and and spare your daughter. She needs you.