• ACCEPTANCE

asiacahlagong ,Definition . (

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of femininity':challenged'E w, your 'legs are hairy!

That's gross!", During summer vacation,with the sun brazing andtemperatures rising to an, unbearable deg,ree, I did not. prepare myselLto go swim-, ming at my aunt's house, but.: decided that it did not matter,

My legs were unshaved,my hair a mess, I probablyresembled an ogre that day.Who doesn't love Shrek, IthC5ugh~. " "

My carelessness, however,was met with the disapprovaland astonishment of my three: teenage boy coqsins as theynoticed my legs.,coveredinhair grown after nearly amonth of not sllavihg,

After absorbing enoughtaunting criticism, I respond-ed with a verbal smack totheir fices that brought meinstant gratification withtheir silence: This is what areal woman looks like.It became clear what had

to be done.'I neededto be as disgust-

ing as possible hot orilYtokeep them from makingunreasonable expectationsfor women, but ~ls0 to groY"more comfortable with beirtgmyself -It was time to expose

them to the dark 'side, tniin~ing them to deal 'with greasyl:l11washedhair, unshavedlegs, no makeup;, enibarrass~.ing zits and a survival gUideto sailing the Re<!_Sea... ,

. One truth about womenthat the opposite sex seemsto pot handle is,that they"aie,

'~vfnfacCprefty 'grass.". :' '_ 'Some women 'are 'evert

uncomfortable admitting _.it, denying that the word"gross" applies,to them.. But, in all ho~esty,"gross" should be the new'''beautiful.''''

Hollywood has fabri-cated a false ima:ge'of how 'awoman is expected' to lookand I will not apologize J9rsh~ttering the illusion thatwomen are naturaliybulit'iike Greek ,goddesses.

Shaving, for example, is a,burden women are forced toendure.I ,It is both a tedious andtroublesome pro~.ess,req,1;lir-ing skill and precision tomake sure the slightest bit ofhair is not missed. '

During the winter season,there is a blanket of reliefas pants are worn daily andrazors are placed in bath- .room ,drawers for annualhibernation.

I beseech men to build .tolerance and accept all theflaws women try to conceal,from a little stu5ble ,on herleg' or a blemish on her face.

Don't tauntwl1at a womanhas no shame to flaunt., I encourage women to feelliberated and unchain them-selves from petty flaws t~at .they should be embracing.

There are many unspokeninsecurities levitating in soci-ety that ca'h only be broughtto the ground leyel when it isremembered that, at the core,women can be disgusting.It is important to work

with 'what you have ratherthan d'esperatelyJrying to ..convince yourself that youneed s.omething else.

Confidence and comfortare the two most attractiveand alluring accessories ailwomen should fashion. I

. Ladies of the world, begross and disgusting to yourheart's content.

Asia Camagong is a staffwriter for The Advocate.Contact her acamagong@accentadvocate.com.

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