I don't think there is anything more important than finding your own sense of calm, of peace, of knowing. I think that is part of our plan here on this Earth. I am posting again to express on a daily basis where I'm finding resonance, where I'm finding fun, peace, calm and joy.
The following commentary is based
on the comedy, “I Feel Pretty,” starring Amy Schumer. It contains details and
ideas made during the film. In the following text, I address why many of the
concepts are relevant and what we all can learn about the emotion of “feeling”
and in this case, “feeling pretty” which could have easily been translated into
“feeling confident” or “feeling good.”
Basic Plot/Storyline:
Amy Schumer portrays a
regular girl, living and working in NYC. She works for a large and successful
cosmetics company that has mostly catered to high-end clients. Instead of
working at the swanky Fifth Avenue corporate headquarters, Schumer’s character,
Renee Bennett works in a dingy, basement of a China-Town dump along with
another worker, who is content on being unseen. They basically work as the
online arm of the business and have been completely ignored and removed from
the glamorous, “day to day” world of the company.
Bennett is slightly
overweight, wears trendy clothes and loves all things modern, fashion and
cosmetics. She keeps up with the current trends and has an active social life
with her 2 BFF’s, two smart, average-type girls who are also living in the Big
Apple. Bennett is comfortable with these two down-to-earth girls, who really
don’t have a strong interest in fashion or cosmetics. Her low self-esteem and insecurities can be put on hold when she
spends her time with her two gal-pals.
I must admit that this movie
made me laugh out loud. One reason is because I do think that Schumer is
hilarious and because of the simplicity and relevancy of the script. Many people spend many of their young adult years trying to be......trying to be accepted, to be pretty, to be skinny, to be rich, to be loved, to be something that they perceive is missing from their lives. Some thing outside of themselves that will make them whole. This is one of the big lies of life, of living, of being and especially existing in a modern (and dare I say, capitalistic) culture.
Renee Bennett is
trying to achieve the perfect American woman dream existence, which includes being
thin, being pretty with high cheekbones, wearing the latest and greatest fashions
and hairstyles, all while being smart, as well as hopefully rich and clever. She is trying to do
all of the right things but something
is not quite right. Her friends are also trying to figure out life but they
seem to be much more grounded in their “what may be seen as” mundane existence.
Bennett is very self-conscious and constantly judging herself (her looks, her body and possibly unconsciously, her worth).
Bennett’s major issue occurs
when she is at a SoulCycle class, with a highly energetic and motivating
instructor, who is asking all of the participants to look within themselves and
to follow their inner dreams. The instructor hypes the class up to believe that
their dreams are somehow tied to their feverish peddling on a bike. Instead of
getting into a high-powered zone, Bennett accidentally falls and bumps her
head, and passes out. When she wakes up, she looks at herself in the mirror and
can’t believe what she sees. She is suddenly breathtakingly beautiful and this
change gives her all of the confidence in the world. She is now happy and confident.
She believes in herself and has the courage to do all the things that she
wants to do.
Video by Trailor To Go
(I Feel Pretty Trailer Song-Me Too by Meghan Trainor)
Now in reality, Bennett has only changed to
herself. Everyone else is dumbfounded by this new surge of confidence and
cannot understand Bennett’s new love and take on her life. As she gazes at herself
in the mirror, she thinks that she actually looks different than she did before and she is convinced that everyone sees this newversion, when in reality, she has not
changed one little bit. What she sees in the mirror is her own idea of perfection and
beauty. She is now in love with the new Renee and lives completely out loud and
fearless.
Renee Bennett reminds me of
someone who has a body dysmorphic disorder, only her condition is actually
empowering (instead of devastating and depressing) because it propels her to
live the life of her dreams. Before the head bump, Renee is generally unhappy and
insecure but tries to do all of the right things, like
wearing trendy clothes, makeup and following you-tube video “beauty” tutorials. Afterward, she
becomes completely in love with her new, totally beautiful self. She can’t
believe her eyes or how beautiful she has become. She can’t get enough of
herself and of course, all of this wonderfulness goes to her head and she
becomes a bit of a monster/mean-girl to her old friends. (But, that aspect could take up a whole "other" post so I won't digress.....)
Bennett has so much
confidence that she is able to win new colleagues and friends. These are individuals who would have never given the old Renee a chance. The old Renee would have faded into the
background and wouldn't have ever been confident enough to approach, let alone, befriend this new and what she perceives as "perfect" group of people. The new Renee is not afraid to be seen and heard, which is a
part of her new charm and charisma. She is finally a member of the In-Crowd, with a new job,
new prospects and a new relationship on the horizon.
Mind you, Renee has not physically changed and still looks
the same to everyone else. The only change that
has occurred is in how she VIEWS and SEES herself. Her inner belief about
herself has transformed and caused her outer life to fall in line and change.
Take Away Points:
1)What you
decide to believe about yourself will be. Can you unconditionally fall in love with yourself? Can you be happy
with what you see in the mirror? Can you look at yourself without judgement?
When Renee Bennett does this, she becomes a better
version of herself, and then a best version of herself when (at the end) she
realizes that she has not physically changed at all. She is the same Renee that
she has always been.
2)If you can
find and tap into being in love with you, it becomes contagious and other
people will love you, too.
Bennett thought that other people saw the version of
her that she was seeing and hence, couldn’t help but love her. This statement
is both true and false. People saw the image of Renee that she projected and believed about herself. Renee saw a different
image of herself in her mind. The mirror displayed the same (old) Renee----everyone
saw the same Renee except Renee.
3)Renee’s
confidence and positivity shines when she realizes her own self-worth.
Bennett didn’t realize until the end that she has not
changed and that her success was based on who she was ---already, unchanged.
Her major change was in attitude and her approach to life; it had nothing to do
with her appearance.
4)Feelings
Matter.
How we feel at any given moment matters and we can learn to
manage how we feel and what we emote.
When Renee felt differently about herself, her life
changed. She felt and exuded confidence. She felt and exuded a happy and
positive persona. She felt and exuded an air and attitude of possibility. She
felt and exuded feeling good about life.
What else can we learn or take away from
this happy and feel-good movie?
· We can choose to love ourselves right now, in our
current
state. We are enough already.
· When we FEEL good, life is and goes better (period).
LIFE IS GOOD.
· We can choose to be the best version of ourselves at
any
moment. We can love ourselves; we are lovable; we are
deserving.
· We do not have to follow and be like everyone else. We
can be ourselves and when we tap into that--that which makes us-us, that which makes us special, then we can tap into and share our divine gifts and talents with the world.
Everything that we seek, we already have. We have been created out of love by the ultimate Source of Love. When we learn to love ourselves, then, we can truly love others.
Video by Victor Antonio (Stephanie Mills, 1976)
"And I've learned that we must look inside our hearts to find a world full of love, like yours, like mine, like home."
Stephanie Mills, 'Home' from the Wiz
All images are CC0 licensed and free for personal and commercial use.
(Disclaimer: This post will be updated weekly and sometimes daily because it just feels so good to do so, scroll down for the latest entries ......)
This is a post that's been sitting in the back of my brain for a couple of days..... It's just a simple idea about what I believe and I want to update it as much as I can, just add to it as I go, as I live and I hope others will come here and share their lives as well..... I would really like to know what you believe or as Oprah says, "What do you know for sure?" As we get older, we still continue to grow and to refine....We change and hopefully we live a life that helps us to become more of ourselves. Do you feel more comfortable in your skin? I know that since I've been spending time, quieting my mind and meditating, I am and I feel more relaxed. I'm calmer and life is just becoming one of more and more ease......ahhhhhhhhh! I meditate because I believe that it helps me to live a life of beauty, abundance and one that is full of ease and joy! 10/17/17
Looking up at red maple leaves against a blue sky on a
beautiful Autumn day in October in the MidWest!
10/19: Because I believe......
that I can choose to feel love and joy every single day. I can open my mind and feel the love of my creator just by gazing into nature....
The turning of the leaves in October 2017 in the MidWest!
10/20 Because I believe...... We can experience joy each and everyday, no matter what is going on....
Beautiful Trees captured in October 2017. Welcome to Fall!
10/22/2017: Because I believe in the power of free will and we always have the power to choose.
We can either live as if life is heaven or hell! It seems to me that one choice is positively and unequivocally better than the other!
Walking along and I see these beauties on October 21, 2017!
10/23: Because I believe that we all can live in a happy place!
Sandpiper Cranes near my house in what appears to be one of their "happy places."
A little something extra today..........so good, watch video below:
Because I believe that life is suppose to be fun and lived with ease. Somewhere along the line, this whole adventure becomes convoluted. If only, we'd look more to nature, to little kids or to the voice within..........
11/04/17:
Because I believe that earning online can be easy and fun!
There are many ways to earn online and I prefer to make it easily and with as much fun as I can! If you like to browse or surf the net, you might as well make money while you do it......
Not just abundance of wealth, but the abundance of Spirit.
May we see the infinite abundance that is at our fingertips.
May we see that abundance, not just as money, but as abundant opportunities to serve others, to guide others, to inspire others and to lend a helping hand to those in need.
May we learn the power of small steps and tiny habits.
May we take just one small step towards the direction of our dreams today.
May we embrace each day with ease and love and joy.
May we seek our inner spirit and being, where you reside and nudge and encourage and love.
May we realize that we are worthy, loving and deserving human beings.
May we spread so much light that we hurt our own eyes.
May we love for the sake of loving and give for the sake of giving.
May we trust that we have all been endowed with something awesome that only we can give and share with the world.
May all of your steps today be inspired and inspiring!
I can't help but smile every time I listen to this video and decided to share it here with you. It could really be called "Basking in His Glory." Once again, Abraham (via Esther Hicks) delivers a powerful way for all of us to get more out of our lives. I love this message and I hope that you do, too!
2) Go outside and move around no matter what the weather. Express appreciation for the things that you encounter in your environment.
Free CC0 License
3) Pick 5 subjects and write 3-4 positive aspects about each of them. Go for a page each!
Free CC0 License
4) Go to a window or outside, look outward and upward and state the following to the universal force. Call the force by whatever name you use and state...
Free CC0 License
"I acknowledge that I am the object of your positive attention and I am appreciating your continual gaze upon my well-being and today, no matter where I am, no matter where I am going, no matter what I am doing and no matter who I am doing it with, I will be in conscious awareness that you too are there with me,
