Beautiful, Brave, Confident. Loving, Humble, Determined. All of these characteristics make up the definition of a princess. As little girls, these are characteristics we aspired to have. These are characteristics our mothers hoped for us to become as we grew. Then, around middle school, we start noticing that our favorite pair of gauchos were “soooo last year” and that the bright orange shoes we just got for Christmas are “definitely NOT a thing anymore.” By high school, we begin wearing makeup to cover the acne that seemed to pop up overnight and we may even start to skip meals in hopes we can fit into those size 00 jeans. Before we know it, we are in college attempting to find ourselves while the media is constantly telling us we will never be good enough. Suddenly, wanting to be a princess discourages us more than excites us because we believe we will never even be close to princess-material.
Unfortunately, this is how it is, but as I grew up, I learned that just because it’s the way it IS doesn’t mean that it’s the way it HAS to be. Although it was and sometimes still is a battle between thinking I’m not good enough and reminding myself that I am, one day I realized the princess I wanted to be was the princess I already was. I may not always see myself as beautiful and I may not always be confident, brave, and determined, but I realized I am a princess because my God is a King. I have been blessed with a life so incredible you could have read it straight out of a picture book. Just as any princess, I’ve had my fair share of trials. Sometimes life tosses me a poison apple and occasionally I’m clumsy enough to lose my glass slipper. I’ve been through enough battles to know life is not always easy, but with God it is most definitely worth it! I strive every day to be a light in this world of darkness and I only hope that my light will shine bright enough to get the people around me to want to shine bright, too!
So no, I’m not a princess because I’m more important than you or anyone else, and I’m not a princess because I get everything I want. I’m not always selfless, and I definitely don’t always carry myself in the most graceful manner. I am nowhere near perfect, but I am still a princess. I am a princess because I have a King who loves me just as I am, He watches over me and protects me throughout every journey and He blesses me every day with the most incredible life. I know that I must remind myself that I am worth it, and that I am enough because my God says that I am. It encourages me to know that the same God who created the universe, the oceans and all things beautiful and magnificent in the world, also created me and if that is not princess material, then I don't know what is. With that being said, I must try my best to do what any princess is expected to do. I must be humble and obedient, selfless and kind, faithful and trusting and loving above all.
"I praise you because I am fearfully and wonderfully made; your works are wonderful, I know that full well." -Psalm 139:14
