Do you love...?

Question

Do you love yourself? and if you do, how did you come to a place of complete acceptance of yourself? The good and the bad. Allow me to add that my self-esteem is in tact, just wanted to get to know you better.

Cheryl E, I agree. But I also feel that if you love yourself, you know to be gentle with yourself as you work toward change.

Answer 1

I have times I do and times I don't. I would say my story is a bit unusual.

One thing I was able to overcome was acceptance of my background. My dad is hispanic/Puerto Rican and my mom is Italian/Sicilian-Irish. I grew up hating my hispanic first and surname (since I was raised on my mom's side) and wanting to be like all the other kids (who didn't accept me). I was raised around Jews, Asians, Indians, and Anglo-Americans, all who were for the most part very rude and mean to me because I wasn't like them.

In high school it was the opposite, I found myself wanting to connect to my hispanic heritage. Of course many of the hispanic kids outcasted me because I wasn't "hispanic" (I was raised speaking english and because to some people my appearance is mostly caucasian/non-hispanic looking, though i disagree) and I always had a hard time fitting in with the white kids, mostly because they tend not to let anybody into their years of bonding social circles. I learned spanish for three years, including having a teacher who told me right to my face i wasn't puerto rican (and she apparently was because she came to the US when she was three....).

Even when I started college, I began hating any european I had in me. I was sick of many of the white people looking at me bad for having hispanic friends and all of a sudden wanting to "accept me" after all these years they ignored me. I didn't understand why so many blacks/hispanics had a problem with me when they didn't even know me. I always was frustrated with Asians and Indians for their rudeness towards me.

It didn't hit me out of the sky, but over time I've learned to become tolerant of all races, even towards people who weren't so tolerant of me. Through it I learned to let go of my hidden racism, and now I'm starting to see myself get along with more people. It still is hard, because hispanic is not a race, but my father is multi-racial and even italians/sicilians (meditteraneans in general) have small traces of other races in them (though most would disagree), and I don't exactly have blonde hair/blue eyes nor do I have the stereotypical latino look.

I think the only hard thing I have is getting a date, since most latinos are not interested in "mixed types" and like their races pure, and that other races generally speaking aren't interested in me (maybe except black, although most of the blacks i've talked to (romantic-wise) really didn't go through with anything as of so far, mostly out of fear of the whole interracial aspect). I've dated a lot of different types, but I've encountered discrimination several times (including a white date who didn't want to see any other race but white in me and said a lot of racist comments, a multi-racial date who commented about being italian constantly when that person blatantly was NOT, a hispanic date who pretty much made me feel like an outcast because of my looks, etc...).

But, I don't struggle with wanting to call myself "white" or "italian" or "hispanic" or anything. "Other" or "mixed" is just fine when someone asks, but when I look in the mirror I'm just me, a mixture of all things, the way nature intended my looks to be. My heart really goes out to others who have troubles with their identity, be it racial, ethnic, group-wise, sexual orientation, etc..., because through all this society-made crap we are all children of God. I still pray one day I can really find myself and find somebody who accepts me for me and not something they want me to be. But I know it will come and when it does I will be the happiest person on earth.

My self-esteem varies depending on my mood. But I can rest knowing I feel just a little bit better about myself knowing it really doesn't matter what I am, even if it does to other people. Blessings to you always.

Answer 2

Love is love

Answer 3

Yes I love myself. I was raised to believe that complete perfection is unobtainable and if I was the best person I could be then the imperfections wouldn't matter quite so much. My parents also told me the imperfections were just as important as everything else because I would learn more from them than the good. Having parents like that, it was easy to accept and love myself just the way I am.

Answer 4

I think it's a double-edged sword. You do have to accept yourself with all your flaws,but you have to look at those flaws and decide if they are how you really want to be, or if you should change yourself in any way. Having real self-esteem means you can face the flaws and do something about them. Of course none of us ever becomes perfect, not even in our own eyes, but we can strive to be better, always.

Answer 5

There are many things about myself that I love. There are also some things I'd like to change (my weight for one). However, I am content as long as I know that I am doing my best build upon my good qualities and make positive changes where neccessary and possible. (see Epesians 4:24 and Romans 12:3)

Answer 6

The greatest love of all, is happening to me..

yeah I do. In the past I didn't and that wasn't a fun time.

Answer 7

Yes I love myself and My Lord Jesus Christ helped me very much with it cause i was lost and I am found was blind but now I see.

Answer 8

Angela...I have a sister by that name...Well! I do in fact love the Sarah that God created so yes, yes, yes!

Answer 9

I love myself because my parents love me, my family loves me, and my friends love me. I satisfy my parents by being respectful and loving.

Answer 10

I do love myself however I do things sometimes that I wish I would not do.