Perspective

As I shared with many of you Tom and I had engagement pictures done last week. Our photographer is awesome for several reasons. Not only did she take some AMAZING pictures of us, but she made me feel beautiful! Talk about ego boost!

Anyway, I am posting because my sister sent me an e-mail that I felt compelled to share some of....

On a funnier note, I was at my local wine shop this evening picking up a bottle when I overheard the shop assistants (who are all related) talking about their bodies. One of the older women in the family was grabbing her belly and saying that she had rolls of fat around her stomach. Her younger brother was rubbing his belly like buddha and telling his niece that she was going to end up looking like him if she kept eating the chocolate she was munching on. It really struck me as funny because, in the US, all three of these people would be considered quite normal looking. Before I could offer my thoughts, the guy turned to me and said (roughly translated), "We're a bunch of nice-looking fatties, but you've lost so much weight recently!" I thought about saying something to the effect that, yes I had but there's still quite a bit I'd like to lose, especially when I saw that they considered themselves fat. Instead, I said, "Yes, I have but I wasn't fat, I was robust!" which all three of them got a big kick out of and responded with a chorus of "yeahs!". It's been instructive to me living in Italy that people in some ways seem to be even more obsessive about weight (and much more likely to point out someone else's weight gain!) than Americans, but in other ways it almost seems like it's a healthier attitude because they talk about it more honestly to the point that it's actually considered affectionate to call someone a "fatty." I have to say, it felt pretty good to make a joke about my weight issues rather than focusing on the fact that I still feel like I have a reasonably long road ahead of me.

I have always admired my sister. I am aware that she has a certain perspective of herself, however the last few visits we have had I have been WOW!!!ed by her progress and her new bod. You look awesome, T!

Just like a good photographer who knows how to find and make things beautiful, its all perspective. Sometimes just being able to see things from other peoples perspectives can shine a new light on how we view ourselves... even if it's only a glimpse.

Love.