She's only 12. And she has the body of a typical 12 year old girl. Not remotely close to fat at all.
Feeling naturally perturbed by her answers, the inner mother hen emerged, and I unloaded a barrage of inquiries probing the rationale and motivations behind her need to work out at such a young age. Her answers echoed of blossoming self-esteem and body dissatisfaction issues. Now of course, once a girl hits puberty, her body undergoes tremendous changes. Overnight, you sprout breasts, experience the first smidgens of sexual attraction amidst other nerve-wrecking hormonal surprises. But for a girl, a mere child, to be so conscious of her body at that age is quite disturbing.
I related the story to a few friends afterwards. One of them announced that at 12 she started starving herself. Another said that she knew of someone who started working out at that age as well. Unbeknown to me, body issues have fast enveloped children.
The saturation of sex and 'waif' ideal body images in the media have evolved into cultural norms and expectations. As a result, women and men are left striving to mould their bodies into shapes and forms that physically encapsulate perfection as socially mandated. Thereby, creating a hotbed of festering body dimorphism married with non-existent self-esteem and confidence. But to actually witness young children picking and embracing our social indicators is just wrong. When did children learn to replicate our insecurities and dissatisfaction?
This chance encounter reminded me of another experience I had with another young kid, many years ago, when I worked at Victoria's Secret. A mother-daughter duo walked into the store looking for suitable training bras. The young girl could not have been more than 10 or 11. They surveyed the sporty collection of the store and the mother picked out specific ones for her daughter. After informing me they would return later to purchase, the duo were heading out of the store when the young girl stopped at a table lavishly displaying bedazzled thongs. The kid grabbed a few thongs and held them up. Her mother (bless her) informed her child that thongs weren't meant for children. The young girl answered that all her friends wore thongs. The mother replied she wasn't going to let her daughter prance around without any underwear just because all the other girls were doing just that. With that being said, the duo left, with the younger one bearing a crest-fallen look. Almost nearing closing time, as I was helping with the last few customers, I noticed the daughter hovering around the thong table, alone. I went up to her and asked if her mother had returned to buy the bras. The young girl picked up three thongs and handed me a wad of cash.
As we adults struggle with myriad issues and insecurities, it is heart-wrenching to reflect that we are passing along our shortcomings to children.
