Confidence is the most beautiful thing one can possess. I remember this particular conversation I had with my Amma when I was a kid. Usually, we tend to forget more than half of the things said to us at such young age but somehow this memory remains intact. My mother, Mrs. Sreekumary Gopinathan was a voracious reader. She read whatever she could get her hands on.
One day Amma was reading a women's magazine and I was curious to see what she was reading. I went behind her and peeked over her shoulder. She was reading an article about a very beautiful lady. There were two pictures of her in that article. One was a single image and in the other one, she was walking on a ramp.
While I was gazing at this person's picture, my mother was observing me. Then she spoke to me in one of those calm affirmative tones, ' See she is also skinny like you.' And I remember thinking 'Oh ya! she is also skinny like me.' I noticed her shoulder bones were also evident in both the pictures. Amma continued, 'She is also dusky like you' My eyes grew wider as I observed her in a new light now. My mother continued, 'She is a supermodel, Look at her walking the ramp; She is Miss India, Madhu Sapre" All of a sudden I felt such pride and confidence in myself. I loved her comparison.
4 years later Amma passed away but I carried her words of self-affirmation throughout my life.
Madhu Sapre was Miss India 1992; I didn't grow up to be Miss India nor a supermodel, but Amma's words always gave me confidence. During my student days, I was super skinny and was dusky but that never bothered me. I never felt I was not enough for myself.
As a Creative Amma I love the technique she used to build my confidence. If it was a direct pep talk I don't think it would have been this effective. She grabbed the opportunity to influence me about body positivity and self-confidence. The things we say to our kids can construct or destruct them. If a child is struggling with self-confidence one of the best ways to influence them and build their confidence is by giving examples of successful people who are similar to them.
Do let me know in the comment section below, what are other creative ways you use to talk about body positivity and self-confidence to your child or niece, or nephew.
