Dear Beauty, 1 year later

 

One year ago tonight, I had the privilege of being in LA for the Team True Beauty 1 year anniversary event. It was an amazing night, and if you'd like to read the details of it, you can check out my post from that night here.
But one of the most memorable moments from the night came from Shantel VanSanten, one of the lovely ambassadors for the cause. She gave a speech that continues to move me every single time I hear it or read it. You can read and view her entire speech here.

Her letter to beauty states:
"Dear beauty, I don’t think we’ve formally met. I’m Shantel Van Santen. I’ve searched to find you for a while now. To find out how you define yourself. There are many others searching for you too. Some of us think you’re found in a number on a scale, or a muscle in our arm, the color of our skin, or our reflection in the mirror. We all struggle because we think you seek a perfect image, and we’ve become obsessed with the search. The idea that others might see us as a reflection of you or call us by your names makes us happy. So we look to the media and we look to mirrors, instead of turning our eyes inward. In the depths of our soul you wait. You wait for our search to end, because that’s where you are found. So we were wrong. Because you’re not an image of something that we can see. You’re a feeling. We define you by how we live our life, the kind of person we choose to be, and what’s in our hearts. Thank you for helping us find you. So that your reflection can be felt in others hearts, that they may know that they possess you too. And we can all unite to define you."

So in honor of the 2 year anniversary of Team True Beauty, and the 1 year anniversary of the event, I decided to write my own letter to beauty, 1 year later:
"Dear beauty, we’ve finally met. I suppose we met a long time ago, but I was never quite satisfied with our relationship. However I've also realized that while I don’t always see you in the mirror, I’ve seen you in the smiles of strangers, in the laughter of children, in the way people love and care for each other, and in the world all around me. I have come to realize that you really are more than a number. You aren’t a clothing size, a waist measurement, a height, or number on a scale. And while I now know this to be true, I can’t pretend that I don’t still struggle. Some days it seems impossible to find you in myself. And those are the days that I depend on my friends and support system the most. Those are the days that I am truly blessed, because I find beauty in relationships. I’ve realized that when you stop defining beauty based on numbers and you begin to define it based on what’s in the world around you and what’s in your heart, you, beauty, are much more prevalent. You are everywhere. Beauty, I am very much different than a year ago. I am older, and at times wiser, I have old friends who have stayed in my life and new friends who provide constant support and encouragement. And yet I am also very much the same. I find myself falling into my old ways of thinking. I find myself still trying to find you in a reflection in the mirror. I find myself weeping and falling apart when I think I’ll never find you in myself. And yet I find hope in the statement that “what you do with your life, how you live it, the things you accomplish, the mountains you climb, the struggles you work through, how you treat one another, the kindness you show, the people you inspire, the love that you give, that’s what defines your heart. And that’s what matters. Not what you look like when you do these things in life.”

Dear Beauty...by Shantel Van Santen

Here is a full transcript of the wonderful Shantel Van Santen's speech at the Team True Beauty 1-year Anniversary event. Enjoy & be inspired!

“Each of you inspires me and each of your strength astounds me. Each of you are a powerful part of a bigger picture. A life that is evolving each day. You are an integral part of this movement for a reason. I read somewhere: ‘Each word or thought of yours can be like a pearl. That you can drop into a secret place of another heart, and in some hour of need, the recipient finds the treasure and realizes for the first time, its value.’ See, change happens with each and every one of you; with your stories and with your voice. We all possess these pearls and you helped this movement grow and reach thousands of people by being brave. I constantly encourage each of you to share your story because you have been given a gift- the gift of a voice. So honor it. And use it for a positive change. Use it so that others might be inspired by your strength and know that they’re not alone. We all struggle. We’re all human. We all feel things and it doesn’t matter if we’re male or female, what age we are, what religion, our sexuality, our job, our walk of life, it’s really universal. We need to throw aside physical judgment of ourselves and others. We need to accept differences and we need to see beauty in those differences. We need to appreciate one another and we need to restore a sense of balance for our generation, and for generations to come. I believe it’s a part of our responsibility to be the change. We’re each unique and amazing and we are made for a higher purpose. We are all beautiful beyond all measure, we are all capable of everything that we can dream, and we are all loved beyond all comprehension. One of my favorite quotes ever is: ‘We are better than we know. If we can be made to see it, perhaps for the rest of our lives we will never settle for less.’ So, embrace yourself- what you are in your heart, so that you might uplift others. Because what you do with your life, how you live it, the things you accomplish, the mountains you climb, the struggles you work through, how you treat one another, the kindness you show, the people you inspire, the love that you give, that’s what defines your heart. And that’s what matters. Not what you look like when you do these things in life. In closing, I want to share a letter with each and every one of you. It’s a letter to something that we aspire to define, each and every one of us. And my hope is that we all have a clearer understanding of what it means so that we can be a reflection of this to others. My letter is to beauty.

Dear beauty, I don’t think we’ve formally met. I’m Shantel Van Santen. I’ve searched to find you for a while now. To find out how you define yourself. There are many others searching for you too. Some of us think you’re found in a number on a scale, or a muscle in our arm, the color of our skin, or our reflection in the mirror. We all struggle because we think you seek a perfect image, and we’ve become obsessed with the search. The idea that others might see us as a reflection of you or call us by your names makes us happy. So we look to the media and we look to mirrors, instead of turning our eyes inward. In the depths of our soul you wait. You wait for our search to end, because that’s where you are found. So we were wrong. Because you’re not an image of something that we can see. You’re a feeling. We define you by how we live our life, the kind of person we choose to be, and what’s in our hearts. Thank you for helping us find you. So that your reflection can be felt in others hearts, that they may know that they possess you too. And we can all unite to define you.

I want to thank each and every one of you for believing in me and I want to encourage each and every one of you to inspire other people with your stories. And I feel very blessed to be a part of this cause.” -Shantel Van Santen

Use Your Words Wisely

“Each word or thought of yours can be like a pearl that you drop into the secret place of another heart, and in some hour of need, the recipient finds the treasure and realized for the first time its value.”

I first heard this quote at the Team True Beauty event during a wonderful speech from Shantel VanSanten. However it didn‘t really stick with me until reading and rereading it a few times while searching for inspiration for my drawing for the TTB January newsletter. It’s amazing how simple these words are, and yet how much power they hold. The words that you say are important and powerful, whether you intend them to be or not. I used to do an activity with my campers. I would have them squeeze a glob of toothpaste onto their finger and then try to put it back in the tube until they became frustrated that the toothpaste wouldn’t go back to where it came from. The point is, once you say something, you can’t unsay it. It cannot be unheard. So your words are very important and they can be used to tear others down or to build them up. It is your responsibility to honor the voice that you have been given and to use it for positive change. Use it to be honest. To be passionate. To be inspiring, kind, and helpful. Use your voice in a way that makes others aware of their own voice. Use it to share your story and to be honest. To make connections and to share in life’s triumphs and struggles. Because using your voice to make a change and inspire others, showing what’s in your heart- that is the definition of beautiful.

The Team True Beauty event!

My main reason for going to LA this past week (other than for an awesome vacation) was to attend the Team True Beauty 1 year Anniversary event. The event took place at the beautiful Avalon Bardot in Hollywood and included a red carpet, a meet and greet, dinner, and some fantastic concerts. I can’t even begin to describe how fun and inspiring the event was. There were so many people there and it was great to see some old friends and meet some new ones. It was also really cool to see so many people of different shapes, sizes, races, ages, abilities, and genders all coming together to support an amazing cause. Throughout the night I got a chance to talk to some amazing celebrities, including Josie Loren, Cassie Scerbo, India DeBeaufort, Alisa Reyes, Jodie Sweetin, Sara Paxton, Sharon Lawrence, Amber Sweeney, and the lovely Team True Beauty ambassadors Shantel VanSanten and Daphne Zuniga. I also got to hear performances by Everly, Annie Automatic, Andrea Merchant, Savannah Outen, and Jessie Payo. And while all of these things were great and added so much fun to the night, I have to share with you 2 of my favorite moments from the event.

The first came when I got a chance to sit down and speak with Shantel. We met back in Wilmington about a year ago, but I never really got a chance to talk with her until this past summer. Over the summer I got to know Shantel a little better and talk to her personally about her story and the messages that she shares with Team True Beauty. However, I know she meets and talks to a million different people, so I was happily surprised when I got to the event and she knew who I was. Once some of the chaos of the meet and greet calmed down, I got a chance to sit down with Shantel and talk to her a little bit more. As usual, she was so sweet in sharing a little more of her story with me. We talked about how important it is to be confident in yourself so that others can see you as an example to be confident in themselves too. We talked about how it’s okay to have struggles and to ask for help because we all struggle and it’s those challenges that bring us together and make us who we are. We finished off the chat with a great big hug and a few tears and moved along with the night. Having those few minutes to talk one on one with Shantel was really special to me, and I am so thankful to have her to talk to.

The next best moment of the night came when it was time for the ambassadors to give their speeches. Shantel and Daphne both had some amazing things to say! My words can't really do it justice, so I'll let the video speak for itself!

There are so many parts of this speech that really stood out to me, I will be blogging about the entire speech in a different post. But for now, enjoy the video and the pictures!

Me and TTB Ambassador Daphne Zuniga

Me and the always sweet Shantel VanSanten

Me and the gorgeous Josie Loren

Me and my travel buddy/roommate, Lindsey

PS- I am so thankful for Megan, Lindsey, Brandi, Julianna, Lolly, Richard, Dana, Amy, Kristen, Michelle, Nicole, Brittany, Morgan, Megan, and Meriam. You all made the night so fun and I’m so glad to know you!