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PEELING OFF LAYERS AND FINDING MORE LAYERS
Me, Myself, and My Body. We’ve Had Our Ups and Downs.
60 years now and it never gets easier
Objectively, our bodies are miraculous, but they are not particularly good looking. Projecting my own esthetic here, but isn’t a dog or cat or goat or piglet, an elephant or porpoise or sea otter or even an iguana or sturgeon, better looking than the most beautiful human? At least, when we stand or swim side by side. Naked.
There’s a reason we wear clothes beyond protecting us from the elements or from some puritanical idea of modesty. Our bodies aren’t much to look at when naked. No colorful fur coats. No iridescent scales. No distinguished whiskers. No plumage. No tails or fins.
Most of us spend a good chunk of our earnings buying stuff to cover ourselves up, especially the bits we consider particularly heinous. We’re also hoping what we wear reflects our uniqueness. Because if we all walked around in the buff, assuming that were socially acceptable, we would all be exactly the same. That terrifies us. No one wants to be a cog in a collective.
I love this NY Times Magazine article by Sam Anderson. Sam explores his relationship with his body in a way that is, in equal parts, supremely uplifting and profoundly…
