Written By Laksshha Khanna (Grade 10)
Does loving thyself make one greedy? Why am I selfish if I do something that I like to do? If being loving is important, isn’t loving yourself more important? Then why put that off!
I belong to an Indian family where we have been brought up in a scenario where you will constantly hear about “the sacrifices that have been made to bring us up”. I think many kids will be able to resonate with this. So to begin with, my mother had to sacrifice her career so that I could be taken care of. My father worked endlessly to provide for my education and comforts and the list of ‘sacrifices’ goes on.
We as children are constantly pressurised to excel in every field of our life, from academics and co-curriculars to being the perfect son or daughter, being the most kind, obedient and blah…blah…blah! We are constantly compared to the child next door or to the cousin who’s got a scholarship……and truly speaking, we are struggling to meet these heavy-duty expectations of society.
My question is why?
In the midst of this rat race the youngsters are getting confused, sad and sometimes turning rebellious. They get so carried away in chasing their dreams and fulfilling expectations that they forget the most important thing- to love themselves!
Some might term me as being mean but I do not feel ashamed to say that I love myself before others. How can it be selfish to give yourself the love and respect that you deserve? Yes, my family does have expectations from me and I would definitely work towards achieving them but not at the cost of my happiness. As a student, I will put in my best efforts to succeed in all my endeavours but will love myself equally. We need to draw the line. If, during the course of events, there is something that bothers me or makes me unhappy, I will definitely take a step back and retrospect.
As we board an aircraft the first thing they announce is that in case of an emergency you need to put on your own oxygen mask first before helping others. Why can’t we practice this in our everyday lives too?
In my opinion, self-love is the most important aspect of life. Where there is love, there is no room for judgement. Especially, the students of our times need to understand that they need to love and respect themselves first for the world to acknowledge them. Self-acceptance is most important. Love yourself, worship your body and take care. Nourish yourself with positive thoughts, do what you want, have fun. Live. Unveil yourself! Let self-love be the new affirmative. It’s time for you to be YOU.
Featured Image Courtesy – Healthshots