From one "fat" person to another.

Fat: a natural oily substance occurring in animal bodies. Fat: a biological component. A macronutrient. An insulator. If fat is all this, why did it suddenly become an insult? Even with all the rallies and campaigns, magazines don’t understand that diets shouldn’t be to impress that high school boy, they don’t understand that they shouldn’t advertise “tens tips to be the perfect ten.”  We live in a world where fake news governs our lives more than real, wholesome tragedies do. Why do we keep hearing about photoshopping models? Why are diseases like bulimia and anorexia side effects of high school bullying? When you’re small, the perfect woman is one that’s skinny, tall and “beautiful.” Why does the media proclaim that beauty is to have plump lips, doe eyes and bony faces? As I scroll through my feed, I see so many posts telling me how to “embrace my curves and love my body” but how do I, when I’m surrounded by a world that tells me to do the exact opposite?

Why do my friends keep feeling insecure about their weight and skin? “I’ve grown fat don’t you think?” “Don’t eat that you’ll become even more fat!” Why does society put so much pressure on women to be the ideal shape and size? The Kim Kardashian hourglass shape is awed and ogled by people around the global community, yet a hard-working conservative shy girl isn’t? Why must women be seductive and sultry? Can’t they just be confident and empowering? I’ve seen too many messages about “losing weight will make you more confident.” Women need to start feeling comfortable in their skin, body or ethnicity. Why must the media dictate how a woman should live her life? No one tells men to get silicone implants or lip injections. So, to anyone reading this; regardless if you’re a man or woman, you are beautiful and loved no matter what you look like. Never let anyone dictate how to spend your time, effort and money. So, from one “fat” person to another, love yourself. It's simple.

Belonging

 The cold air blew all over my face. I thought about what had happened in her life.

The wars between India and Pakistan, Syria and Jordon, South and North America, why are they being fought? Our sense of belonging to a particular caste, race, country culture, religion makes us so negligent to the possible consequences that we are unable to see that we are fathoming our own doom.

“Give me my toy back!”

“Please, can I see it?”

“No its mine, it belongs to me!” Even as kids we’ve always had a sense of what’s mine and what’s yours but never what’s ours. Whether it’s a toy or it’s a country, what’s mine will be mine.

As a child growing up in Iraq in the year 3020, wars were a part of our life. The century-old war between Iraq and Baghdad had started when my great-grandmother was alive. Wars have become a household word, but WHEN WILL THEY STOP?

Wars, wars, and wars that’s all it is! I feel fighting for belonging doesn’t make sense! It just damages everything being fought for - rivers, land, mountains, cities and our opportunities. Schools in Iraq have stopped functioning so mum homeschools me. I miss having fun with Isiah and Ryan. They moved away because of the war while we stayed in our homeland with the hope of a better tomorrow. Other children got to run around and scream in the courtyard, while I was bottled up in my house listening to the dead hum of the drones. The television, my only source to the world was running with the latest broadcast.

“Stop the war, free Iraq” I screamed. What does it matter if a piece of land belongs to Iraq or it belongs to Baghdad? My mother and I were tired of being prisoners of war for it was still going on. After waiting for 4 years I decided I wanted to be a socialist and try to free our people from the bonds of belonging in the hope of returning childhood to the future generations. The war had been going on for over 20 years and after several UN meetings, it still hadn’t stopped.

My phone rang, I picked it up, it was dad. “Hello? Dad I’m kind off busy right now.” I paused for a second, listening to him, the moment I heard him say the words I dropped down in the middle of the crowd.

I ran to the cathedral, it couldn’t be true, until I saw her body there. My mom always wanted to see the country, the world free from wars and her death gave me even more motivation to follow my dream, to free the world from the bonds of belonging. My mother’s words flashed “One day I’m going to sink in and belong to the fireflies. It's up to you to be the change”