My Little Black Boy

What is beautiful?

Is it tall (but not too tall), white (not not too white), thin (but not too thin), with perfect blonde-ish beach-wavy hair?

If you ‘like’ my page on Facebook, you might have seen me mention that my son was called “the little black boy” at the playground the other day. You might be thinking ‘ya, so, he actually is the little black boy, what’s the big deal?’ And honestly, I wasn’t offended at all, my boys responded well and it really wasn’t a tragic situation. I do wish the lady didn’t need to identify my kids by their color, but oh well. That’s life. It probably won’t be the last time that happens.

But recently my older son has become a little more aware of the way he looks, how he’s different and what he ‘should’ look like. He is very self-conscience about his teeth, because it’s taken a while to have the front two come in. He is very aware that he is ‘brown’ as he calls it and that he’s pretty much the only kid in the area that is. He has never mentioned that as a negative thing, but he is still very aware.

And honestly, it breaks my heart. I wish it were easier for him and really for everyone to look and the mirror and see the beautiful work that God did. He doesn’t make mistakes and you were made the exact way you were supposed to be made.

I write this blog about beauty, fashion, hair, style not because those things are the way to become beautiful. I hope my point never comes across that I think you need these things to look or feel great about yourself. I absolutely never want to give the impression that you have to look a particular way to be beautiful.

So today I thought would be as good of time as ever to get back to the roots to why I am here writing. Makeup, hair, style, they’re fun. I enjoy them. I enjoy putting myself together and feeling good about myself after. But that’s not beauty. Me, exactly the way God formed me, that’s beautiful. With my big ears, big feet, my 6 feet tall frame, my big thighs and small boobs — all those things are beautiful.

And you. When you look in the mirror, whether you see pale skin or chocolate brown, stick straight hair or frizzy as ever — you too are beautiful!! What an amazing world we live in that no one looks exactly the same! Can you imagine if everyone was the same or even similar? How boring!!

Today, I have a little challenge for you. Look in the mirror and tell yourself you’re beautiful. Give yourself permission to say it and to feel it. You’re not being cocky, you’re self centered, you’re not gloating. You’re admiring the handiwork of our Creator. And you know what, whether you agree or not with that last statement, it doesn’t matter. There is beauty in the individuality and uniqueness of each and every one of us.

I saw this video from the lovely Lupita Nyong’o as she accepted an award at an Essence Magazine’s Black Women in Hollywood show. She is well spoken, elegant and beautiful and I think what she shares can be applied to us all. I hope you get a minute to watch it!

Kinda deep for a Thursday morning? I watched this video the other day (thanks mom for pointing it out!) and knew I had to write a little piece about it. I want to make sure I never lose focus about why I write here. I also truly want to be inspiring for anyone who happens to read. I want you to see your true beauty and feel like you can conquer your world.

Because girl — you most certainly can.

Mar 13th

Author information

Natalia Owner & Author
Natalia is a mom to two crazy boys and wife to one handsome dude. She lives in France part of the year where her husband plays professional basketball, but she hails from Southern California. The hubs was born & raised in Nassau, Bahamas, which makes them an intercultural, interracial family traveling the globe together since 2007. She loves to cook (but mostly eat), hang with her fam, be adventurous, & find ways to stay girlie in a house full of men. On her site you can find loads of hair tutorials, makeup ideas, & fashion tips for the everyday woman. She believes that beauty and fashion don't have to be intimidating and that every woman should learn to embrace her own beauty. TwitterFacebookGoogle LinkedIn

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