Who is this girly girl?
The Nation
I’m not a girly girl, I tell people. They understand. I don’t like makeup, and the only product I carry around with me is lip balm. Not gloss, just cherry flavored lip balm which was a gift and which I’ve been using very rarely since February. I don’t wear jewelry and all those accessories associated with teenage girls. Sometimes, my mother makes me wear a chain. But besides that, I don’t go looking for jewelry. I paint my nails, but that too only when I remember to do so, and I never paint my nails to suit my outfit.
This takes me to clothes. I don’t choose my outfits for work. I’m doing both my mother and the people I work with a favor by letting my mother choose my clothes. If I were to pick clothes, I’ll wear the same jeans and different t-shirts every single day. Since I tend to spill food everywhere, most of my clothes have stains on them. Who would want to work with such a badly dressed person?
During the first few days of my two-week stay with my father, he kept asking me if I needed a haircut. I told him that I liked my hair the way it was. If writing didn’t work, I could always dress up as a clown for a children’s party; and I wouldn’t even need a wig! However, he soon abandoned the subtle hints and directly told me I looked like a golliwog and really needed a haircut. I still stand by my belief that my hairdo, which slightly does resemble a crow’s nest, suits my personality.
So when you add all of these things together, I don’t look like a girly girl. And I’m not one, because I absolutely dislike shopping, except for books. Many family members have been telling me to be more physically fit and to exercise. But I just don’t see myself tired and sweating just to lose some weight. And I’ll always choose yummy junk food over a flat tummy. So I don’t fit into the image of a girly girl, yet, who exactly is a girly girl?
Society’s description of a girly girl is terrifying. They talk in acronyms and always take pictures which they then heavily edit and instagram immediately. They have these shiny phone covers and wear just too much make up. They keep fiddling with their hair, which smells like strawberries and they go to McDonalds to eat salad! They are also super clingy, they post statuses where they tag their special someone, use these ridiculous nicknames and tend to want to always hug and shriek and roll their eyes. If this is the image of a girly girl, well, they are terrible creatures.
Yet, most of us aren’t that bad. Of course, I did cry when Mufasa died, and I cried for Brokeback Mountain, Sweet November and even Walk to Remember, if I remember right. I do watch those clichéd romantic movies but I also watch action, horror and comedy flicks. I absolutely detest superhero movies, and thought I was watching a spider man movie for the first few minutes of Man of Steel, yet, I despise such movies not because I’m a girl.
So this definition of a girl needs to change because most of us are neither girly girls nor tomboys. However it’s not only the girls who suffer. The stereotype of a man is absurd. People say a male who isn’t this macho, pretentious jerk is just a little boy. Men have feelings too, let them be emotional sometimes. While watching Lion King, I wouldn’t expect anyone to not cry; and if society is going to ridicule a man for being himself, then shame on you, society!
We live in this world so full of stereotypes. And sometimes life is just too difficult when we don’t fit into that image. So we try hard to seem like we are what people expect from us. Yet, these expectations and pre-determined personalities only hurt people. Simply put, stereotypes need to go!
I’m not a girly girl, I tell people. They understand. I don’t like makeup, and the only product I carry around with me is lip balm. Not gloss, just cherry flavored lip balm which was a gift and which I’ve been using very rarely since February. I don’t wear jewelry and all those accessories associated with teenage girls. Sometimes, my mother makes me wear a chain. But besides that, I don’t go looking for jewelry. I paint my nails, but that too only when I remember to do so, and I never paint my nails to suit my outfit.
This takes me to clothes. I don’t choose my outfits for work. I’m doing both my mother and the people I work with a favor by letting my mother choose my clothes. If I were to pick clothes, I’ll wear the same jeans and different t-shirts every single day. Since I tend to spill food everywhere, most of my clothes have stains on them. Who would want to work with such a badly dressed person?
During the first few days of my two-week stay with my father, he kept asking me if I needed a haircut. I told him that I liked my hair the way it was. If writing didn’t work, I could always dress up as a clown for a children’s party; and I wouldn’t even need a wig! However, he soon abandoned the subtle hints and directly told me I looked like a golliwog and really needed a haircut. I still stand by my belief that my hairdo, which slightly does resemble a crow’s nest, suits my personality.
So when you add all of these things together, I don’t look like a girly girl. And I’m not one, because I absolutely dislike shopping, except for books. Many family members have been telling me to be more physically fit and to exercise. But I just don’t see myself tired and sweating just to lose some weight. And I’ll always choose yummy junk food over a flat tummy. So I don’t fit into the image of a girly girl, yet, who exactly is a girly girl?
Society’s description of a girly girl is terrifying. They talk in acronyms and always take pictures which they then heavily edit and instagram immediately. They have these shiny phone covers and wear just too much make up. They keep fiddling with their hair, which smells like strawberries and they go to McDonalds to eat salad! They are also super clingy, they post statuses where they tag their special someone, use these ridiculous nicknames and tend to want to always hug and shriek and roll their eyes. If this is the image of a girly girl, well, they are terrible creatures.
Yet, most of us aren’t that bad. Of course, I did cry when Mufasa died, and I cried for Brokeback Mountain, Sweet November and even Walk to Remember, if I remember right. I do watch those clichéd romantic movies but I also watch action, horror and comedy flicks. I absolutely detest superhero movies, and thought I was watching a spider man movie for the first few minutes of Man of Steel, yet, I despise such movies not because I’m a girl.
So this definition of a girl needs to change because most of us are neither girly girls nor tomboys. However it’s not only the girls who suffer. The stereotype of a man is absurd. People say a male who isn’t this macho, pretentious jerk is just a little boy. Men have feelings too, let them be emotional sometimes. While watching Lion King, I wouldn’t expect anyone to not cry; and if society is going to ridicule a man for being himself, then shame on you, society!
We live in this world so full of stereotypes. And sometimes life is just too difficult when we don’t fit into that image. So we try hard to seem like we are what people expect from us. Yet, these expectations and pre-determined personalities only hurt people. Simply put, stereotypes need to go!
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