"You aren’t going out like that, are you?” My mom
asks me suspiciously, eyeing the black floral leggings I just bought that day.
“No,” I said honestly, “But why not?” I wasn’t planning on wearing them out
when we went out shopping that evening; however, there wasn’t any particular
reason why- I was simply trying them on for a day that I would wear them.
I didn’t used to wear leggings out in public. I also
scoffed at people who did- leggings weren’t meant to be worn out in the open, I
thought. How disrespectful. But that was before I spent a summer at Eden
Village Camp.
Among the policies at Eden Village is one known as
“no body talk.” Body talk is the act of commenting on how a peer looks, whether
it be about their clothing, hairstyle, or body type. I have on numerous occasions
back home been called “skinny,” “small,” “bony,” even “tiny.” And I’ve felt
self- conscious about my body, desperate to cover up that which made people
point out my flaws.
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| Two summers ago at Eden Village Camp |
But spending a summer at Eden Village- where, instead
of focusing on physical appearances- campers and staff are encouraged to look
within- my confidence soared. I realized that I can wear whatever makes me
comfortable, even outside the Eden Village bubble. While my work attire
consists of casual yet professional unprinted T-shirts and jeans, I will take
the liberty on non-work days of wearing leggings with perhaps a tank top.
Comments about my body may continue every once in a while, but my experiences
at this point have shifted my behaviors and responses toward those comments.
While I actually happen to think I look good in leggings, my perspective on
clothing has changed. And recognizing the qualities beyond those leggings is
something to celebrate.
