I have always loved my naturally curly hair. Even on the days where it was just a mishmash of knots, I never really thought twice about wanting to change that. My messy hair was always a characteristic about myself that I was proud to share with the world.

Growing up, I never saw a problem with the way I looked or how I felt about myself; that was until a group of older girls, that I called "my friends," constantly pin pointed every flaw in my appearance. To stop their comments, I begged my mom for a hair straightener, thinking this would solve all my problems (how pathetic). When I would straighten my hair, I made sure for these girls to see; I wanted them to see me looking pretty for them- or in other words, not myself. Now that they were satisfied with my tidy straight hair, they took one look at my face, and offered to "fix" my eyebrows and show me how to apply makeup. Note that I was only in fifth grade, and the only thing I wanted to be concerned with was what game I would play at recess, not how my eyebrows were too thick and whether or not my hair was too curly.

The saddest part of all of this whole experience was that I was constantly told that I needed to "fix" the way I looked to be seen as beautiful. Being exposed to this at such a young age, has had a lasting impact on me today, but yet I am nothing but grateful for this whole experience. If anything, these "friends' of mine showed me to love my chaotic curls and my disheveled eyebrows, because they make me feel like myself, who I like to think has a unique kind of beauty.

Don't get me wrong, it has been a long and painful journey to get my confidence to where it is today; some days I am just as insecure as that fifth grader hiding behind people's comments, and other days I rock a uni-brow. No matter how cliche this might sound, it is important to know your self-worth and know what makes you feel beautiful, whether it is wearing makeup, wearing your favorite sweatpants, doing something new with you hair, or whatever it might be, you being you, is the best kind of beautiful there is.