26. Starve off the parts you don't need. They're ugly and drag you down. - I don't quite understand this.  What parts don't you need?  Your muscles?  Your heart?  You know the first thing that you'll lose when you start to starve off your "parts"?  You'll lose your boobs.  And most girls want those.

27. Nothing can't be fixed with hunger and weightlessness. - Let's see.  Nothing can't be fixed, eh?  What about AIDS?  Did you know that you can't treat AIDS with ARV unless the recipient is on a healthy diet?  If they're malnourished, the treatment doesn't work.  What about world hunger where thousands of children die each day?  What about homelessness?  What about corrupt governments?  What about eating disorders?

28. Saying 'No, thanks' to food is saying 'Yes, please' to THIN! - Not necessarily.  Please refer back to number one on this long list.  Now this could work if you replaced some of the words and made it: "Saying 'No, thanks' to unhealthy, fatty, junk foods and replacing them with healthy foods and plenty of nutrients while being sure to put in an hour of exercise each day is saying 'Yes, please' to a THIN and HEALTHY body!"  I'm sure that's what you meant to say... you just didn't want a run-on sentence. :)

29. Fat people are so huge, people see through them and it's like they don't exist. - Oh no... believe me.  You can't see through a fat person.  Haven't you ever been to that party or family reunion when your extremely obese uncle or aunt or grandparent comes in and starts singing really loudly?  Believe me, it's impossible to ignore them.  But all joking aside, you shouldn't look at the outside appearance so much.  You're judging overweight people.  You can have overweight friends.  They exist just like you do.

30. The only time people notice a fat person is when they get in the way of that beautiful thin girl walking by. (I know that one sounds horrible.) (Oh well.) - I love how you finally start to feel guilty.  Finally.  After everything cruel and stereotypical you've said before in this list... you feel a little guilty at number thirty.  And then put it aside with a little, "Oh well."  I don't really want to honor this argument with much of a response because it isn't true.  I've got some friends who are bigger than others.  They're way nicer than a lot of the skinny people I know.  I don't notice my friends because of the way they look.  I notice them because of their personalities and their hearts.  When you talk (or in this case, write) in the way that you've been writing, it makes you have not-so-much of a nice heart.  Your words hurt people.  That's what makes people want to ignore you.  That's what makes people feel bad about themselves.  That's what causes low self esteem and eating disorders.

Check in on Tuesday for the next installment of 40 Reasons to Eat. 

21. Do you want people to say, 'For ____ sake get off me, you're crushing me; I can't breathe!' or 'You are soo light.'? - I actually can't bring myself to say much about this, other than, "What on earth are you doing on top of someone in the first place?"

22. Underweight, a.k.a. perfect body. - According to who?  Barbie?  Being emaciated is not healthy, so it's not a perfect body. 

23. Ballerina? Or beanbag? - This made me laugh a little.  Your reasons not to eat are getting weaker, so I'm not having to actually provide much of an argument to make them look silly.  Let's see.  No matter what you look like, you aren't going to be a beanbag... because a beanbag is an inanimate, cloth object with little white beans inside.  No matter how much you eat, you can't be a beanbag.  You can only be a ballerina if you take years and years of classes and practice and teaching.  And being a ballerina takes strength and muscle.  If you are underweight or malnourished, you cannot be a ballerina.  You won't be strong enough. 

24. I want to be light enough so a helium balloon could lift me and carry me to the clouds...like in my reoccurring dream; I love that dream. - That is impossible.  You would have to be less than a pound for that to ever happen.  A seven pound newborn baby can't be carried by a helium balloon.  A little chihuahua dog can't be carried by a balloon.  A candy bar can't be carried by a balloon.  Once a teacher of mine gave everyone in my classroom a helium balloon.  They were each weighted down with a tiny DumDum sucker.

25. I want to walk in the snow and leave no footprints. - Again, even a tiny four ounce bird will walk through the snow and leave footprints.  This is impossible unless you are some sort of ghost.  So you will be dead.  Not good.

Check in on Sunday for the next installment of 40 Reasons to Eat.  

16. Only fat people are attracted to fat people. Do you want pigs to like you because you are one of them? - Wow, this writer is starting to become kind of rude.  Incredibly rude, actually.  Something this rude doesn't even deserve a clever retort.  I guess I'll just give you a picture instead. 

17. Anyone can have 'inner beauty,' but few can earn real beauty, inside as well as out. - This is warped.  This is the opposite of what little girls are taught.  Personally, I know very few girls who have achieved inner beauty.  Not just anyone can have it.  When you have true inner beauty, it literally shines through your smile and makes you beautiful, no matter how much you weigh.  On the other hand, can you think of that really pretty girl at your high school who has a gorgeous face and body... but is the biggest jerk in the world?  Now imagine a friend of yours or someone you admire who is sweet and kind and very pretty.  Which of those would you rather be compared to?

18. You'll be able to move as quietly and skillfully as a spider. - There's your inspiration, girls.  Lose weight and you'll look like a spider.  What a cute little guy. (I'm one of those people who fear spiders more than death.  And you want to be like this?!)

19. Only thin people are graceful. - I wish I could find this video, but I was watching the dance show, So You Think You Can Dance, one day during an episode of auditions.  A dancer who was overweight came and danced beautifully.  She made everyone cry.  She was very graceful. 

20. If you slap a fat person, you can see a shockwave ripple over their skin. That's disgusting. - You would have to be pretty fat for that to actually happen.  But honestly, are you planning to be slapped any time soon?  Is getting slapped something you look forward to?  Maybe if you had a little bit of fat, people would refrain from slapping you.  Yikes.

Stay tuned for Friday to read the next installment of 40 Reasons to Eat. 

11. Bones are clean and pure. Fat is dirty and hangs on your bones like a parasite. - Having a lot of fat is kind of gross, I'll admit.  But you are leaving out two key things in your body.  One, blood.  Two, muscle.  Right now, your bones are not "clean"- they are covered in blood.  I would show you a picture, but that would repulse you and me both.  But what about muscle?  If you're only showing "clean and pure" bones, that means you won't be fit.  That means you won't be strong.  That means you won't have muscle.  And a little fat is not bad at all.  According to the American Dietetic Association, women should actually have 20-25% body fat to be healthy.

12. If you eat, you'll look like those disgusting, fat, ghetto and trailer-trash hookers on Jerry Springer. - Yikes.  That's a bit extreme, isn't it?  I mean, I eat.  Three meals a day and plenty of snacks in between.  I'll show you a picture of me to your right.  Do I look like one of those disgusting, fat, ghetto and trailer-trash hookers on Jerry Springer?  I sure hope not.  Another thing... I don't see how eating could make you trailer-trash, because in order to even qualify for that cruel stereotype, wouldn't you have to live in a trailer-home?  That has nothing to do with eating.  And I don't think being a hooker has anything to do with food either.  Same with being ghetto.  What does any of that have to do with food?

13. The models that everyone claim are beautiful, the spitting image of perfection, are any of them fat? ...NO... - I've never really considered models to be very beautiful.  I don't think they're even really meant to look beautiful.  In order to become a runway model, you must have fairly plain features, be able to look severe and serious, pull your hair back tightly away from your face, and all because attention is not supposed to be on your gorgeous face and body, but on the clothes you're wearing... really, models are a bunch of walking coat racks.  The world does put a false sense of "beauty" on girls who have "model-thin" figures and that is wrong.  But also think about how much the media praises girls like Gabourey Sidibe and Jordin Sparks, girls who are comfortable with their own weight?

14. Too many people in America are obese. - That's very true.  But there's actually a good thick line between obese and malnourished.  You want to be on that line... right at a healthy weight.  Talk to your doctor to find out what your ideal weight is.  Don't think he's full of it... he's been to school for years and years to learn this stuff.  He knows what he's talking about.

15. People who eat are selfish and unrealistic. - Harsh!  This hurts my feelings.  I guess that means I'm selfish and unrealistic.  First of all, how am I selfish?  I'm eating and not wasting food that I've been blessed with.  Secondly, I wish I could talk to this writer in person.  I don't understand how I'm the one being unrealistic.  Not eating is unrealistic.  Thinking you can survive without food is unrealistic.

Check in on Wednesday to read my next installment of 40 Reasons to Eat. 

To read the reasons behind why I'm writing this, please refer to my article called Thinspiration.

6. People will remember you as the 'beautiful thin one.' - I know some people who are naturally very thin and they constantly struggle to gain weight because they don't want to be remembered as the 'thin one.'  When you look like a stick, people do notice you... but it's often not with attraction.  Do you really want people to speak of you as, "Oh my gosh, do you see that girl?  She's like a bony twig.  Ew."  People think curves are attractive.  Hour glass figures.  Boobs and behinds (pardon my bluntness) are what guys like.  Not just bones and skin. 

7. If someone has to describe you, they'll say, 'oh, she weighs like 100, 110 lbs.' - I don't think I've ever described someone by trying to guess their weight.  I don't know any normal person who is like, "You don't know Jane?  I think she weighs 100, 110 pounds..."  "Ohhh, I remember her now!"  No, are you kidding?  People describe people like this: "You don't know Jane?  She has light brown hair, glasses, and she's kind of short.  She has a lot of freckles."  The only time someone would even mention your weight while describing you would be if you were noticeably scrawny or obese... but I still doubt they would say you were "like 100, 110 pounds."  They would say, "You don't know Jane?  She has light brown hair, glasses, and she's really, really, really skinny.  Like a stick."

8. Guys will want to get to know you, not laugh at you and walk away. - Answer this: do you really want to date a guy who would laugh at you if he considered you "fat" or "ugly"?  Is that really your dream guy?  Personally, my dream guy is someone who will look at me when my hair is a mess, I've gained a few pounds, I'm wearing sweats and no makeup, and still say with complete honesty, "Wow, you're beautiful today," because he loves me for me.  That's the guy I want.  But if you want that jerk who only cares about you if you look stick-thin, you can have him.  Nobody else will. 

9. Starving is an example of excellent will power. - No it isn't.  Starving yourself is an example of reaching desperately for power over something because you can't find it anywhere else.  In other words, oftentimes because of a difficult situation beyond her control, a girl struggling with an eating disorder feels the need to control something, so she controls the weight of her own body.  Excellent will power would be abstaining from a 2,000 calorie chocolate cake and eating a healthy sandwich instead.  Excellent will power would be getting up every morning to go on an hour-long jog.  Excellent will power would be overcoming an eating disorder and living to tell the story.

10. You will be able to see your beautiful, beautiful bones. - I won't even bother to write a paragraph about this.  Just tell me one thing.  Which body type does most people consider beautiful?  The fit and healthy woman who is slender and fit, but has a few curves... or the woman who is obviously struggling with an eating disorder?  Which attracts you the most?
 

To read the reasons behind why I'm writing this, please read my article called Thinspiration.

1. You will be FAT if you eat today. Just put it off one more day. - (The following response is written assuming that you will eat tomorrow... since you are only putting off eating "one more day.") Why will you be fat if you eat TODAY rather than tomorrow?  Let's take a look at science.  If you postpone eating for a day, your body will actually go into survival mode... and the next time you eat, your metabolism will be much lower and your body will hold onto the fat and the calories that it would normally burn.  So technically, if you don't eat today, you're going to get fatter when you eat tomorrow.  If you eat around six small meals throughout the day each day, you will actually be causing your metabolism to speed up and you will burn more that way.  Don't believe me?  Here's an article for you to read. 

2. You don't NEED food. - This actually made me laugh out loud, even though this isn't funny.  You don't need food?  Seriously?  Wow, in that case, those 35,000+ people who die every day from malnutrition need someone to tell them this.  Don't believe me?  Here's another article.

3. Fat people can't fit everywhere. - This is very true.  But the only "fat" people who can't fit somewhere are those who are morbidly obese... as in hundreds and hundreds of pounds.  If you go to the doctor and he/she tells you that you are morbidly obese, then yes, I would recommend that you lose some weight.  In a healthy manner.  With a nice diet (not an eating disorder) and exercise, all monitored by a health expert. 

4. Guys will be able to pick you up without struggling. - Do you really want a guy to be able to pick you up without struggling?  Do you realize what this means?  You're walking down a dark, abandoned alley.  A man comes and picks you up and puts you into his car and rapes and kills you... without struggling.  Believe me, sister.  You want a guy to have to struggle a little.

5. You'll be able to run faster without all that extra weight holding you back. - In order to be able to run fast, you need to have muscle.  If you don't eat, you will lose that muscle.  That means that you will not be able to run fast.  Also, lack of nutrition will make you feel dizzy and weak, so you really won't be able to run fast.  And finally, muscle weighs more than fat... so there will be weight on you when you run. 

Okay, that's it for today!  Check back on Saturday for five more reasons why you should eat. 
 

Today, I overheard a comment made by a student who attends my high school.  "I'm proud of Texas, Christianity, and the Bible, but I am not proud of America." 

That saddened me.  Sure, it's true that America- like every other country- has issues and corruption within its government and politics.  Since America was established as a nation, we have suffered from various corrupt leaders and stupid choices.  And we shouldn't be proud of those things.  However, is America made up of only Clinton or Bush or Obama?  If you hate war, abortion, or health reform, does that mean that you should also hate America?

Of course not. 

As Seneca once said, "Men love their country, not because it is great, but because it is their own." America was founded with hopes and dreams for a better future and a new reality.  In many ways, our nation has fulfilled its goals.  We offer religious freedom to all.  We've provided jobs and new lives for many people.  We've grown from almost nothing to the most powerful nation in the world.  And there is no denying that we have made many mistakes along the way, but tell me this: what country hasn't?

Have you heard the saying, "Don't throw the baby out with the bathwater"?  This applies to America. 

The United States is filled with corruption, violence, and hatred.  When you look around you, what do you see?  Do you see men and women being sent overseas to kill hundreds of people?  Do you see thousands of murdered babies?  Do you see the 33,300 people committing suicide every year?  Do you see the moral disintegration everywhere you turn?  Yes.  You can't live in America and escape from the symptoms of spiritual death all around you.

But are you looking for the baby?

"There is no baby," you might say.  "The metaphorical dirty bathwater has transformed into a sizzling acid that consumes everything in its path.  Whatever was left of the baby has already been destroyed."

Not true.  The baby in the bathwater is the morality, equality, and enduring hope that Americans share.  Our country was founded as one nation under God.  We recognize a brotherhood and sisterhood with fellow Americans and we have a unity that not all nations share.  That is the baby.  The baby may be pale and sickly, thin and gaunt, but it has not yet been destroyed.  There is still hope for America.

If you are feeling ashamed and repulsed by America- embarrassed by her fraying edges and rotting core- then what do you plan on doing about it?  If you pull away from the United States completely and refuse to have anything to do with it, then how will anything ever change?  Let me give you some ideas.

Revive yourself.  America is made up of more 307,000,000 people.  When you see the corruption around you, it does not only come from a few rotten leaders.  It comes from the hearts of the citizens of your country... from you as well.  Before you start picking at other people and saying, "this is why I'm not proud of my country," see what you can do to change things.  A revival does need to start in America, but it won't just happen.  It will start with first one person and then another and another.  Why not let it start with you?  Robert G. Ingersoll said, "He loves his country best who strives to make it best."  What are you doing to make your life and your community and your country a better place?
 
Talk about it.  Don't just go around saying, "I hate my country.  America has turned into a bunch of liars and thieves.  No, talk to your friends and loved ones about what you can all do to change the situation around you.  Write letters to the media and to your local representatives.  Start a revival around your community.  Empty talk will change nothing.  Talk followed by actions can change a lot.  Let your voice be heard.

Do something.  If you dislike your government, then change them.  We're a democracy.  You can vote.  Vote for your president, for your senator, for your congressmen... vote for everyone you can to get the right-hearted people into office.  For my readers who are too young to vote yet, encourage your parents, teachers, and the adults all around you to vote.  If you don't like the way the government is treating the poor, then get out there and start serving them to the best of your ability.  If you don't like the way your government handles an issue, then start a petition- contact the media- write letters.  Don't sit back and fume and let it all happen.  Apathy is never the answer.

Pray.  There can be no successful country without God's help.  America was founded under God, but we are falling away quickly.  Pray without ceasing for a revival to occur in the United States.  Pray that God will help open the eyes of the lost and deceived in our nation.    

I hope this article has made you think.  If you are struggling to keep a sense of pride for your country, then do not yet lose hope.  Feel shame about the things that have gone wrong in the past.  Feel anger about the injustices.  Feel sadness for those who have been lost.  But feel hope about your future and strive to make a difference.  I'll end with a quote by one of our greatest presidents.

"I like to see a man proud of the place in which he lives.  I like to see a man live so that his place will be proud of him." -Abraham Lincoln

Have an opinion- agreement or disagreement- about this article?  Leave me a comment.  I'd love to hear what you have to say.

The pictures come from here and here.

The harsh edge of the blade flashed in the light that came in through the window.  Tori squeezed her eyes shut and clenched her teeth as she brought the razor down onto the open skin of her arm.  She felt numb and dirty.  Both old and new scars covered her body, from her thighs to her arms and even on the hidden area of her stomach.  Blood beaded on the thin lines made by the blade and Tori pushed the knife away, disgusted with herself.  She'd messed up... again. 

Every time Tori promised herself that she wouldn't cut anymore, something always happened that made her give in.  Someone would make a mean comment about her at school, she would get in a fight with her parents, she would simply look in the mirror and think, "I can't stand myself.  I deserve this."  And then she would be in that same dark place she so often was.  It was like she could not stop, no matter how badly she wanted to end this habit.

It was like an addiction. 

Tori had been a Christian for several years, ever since she responded to the alter call at summer camp when she was eleven.  At first, her passion for God only grew... but then life started to get hard.  Her parents got a divorce.  She lost a couple friends right before she entered high school.  Now Tori felt like God was far away.  She felt like when she prayed, her pleas were static and distant.  She wondered if God could even hear her.  She stared at her reflection in the bathroom mirror.  She felt ugly and unloved.  "Maybe I've messed it all up," she thought bitterly.  "I can't love myself.  Maybe God can't love me either."

---

The topic of self injury touches close to home.  For most of my middle school years, I struggled constantly with self injury.  I was depressed, I felt disconnected from God, and I expressed my hidden pain through the blade of a knife.  Self injury may be something that you or someone you know struggles with, and if that is the case, then I hope this article can help you find encouragement.   

One of the biggest problems with self injury, namely cutting, is that it is a compulsive behavior.  When you cut yourself, you're releasing pain endorphins into your body that give you a false sense of relief and even a high of sorts.  Each time something happens that makes you feel sad or upset, you feel the need to turn back to self injury to give you that same release of tension you felt before.  Cutting can easily become an unending cycle.  You want the temporary relief, so you cut... and then you feel guilty for allowing yourself to cut, and the guilt causes you to cut again... and around and around you go.  

Even if you have only been cutting for a few months, it can be extremely difficult to stop.  In fact, it may seem impossible.  Please know that it is possible to end this addiction.  I haven't cut for nearly three years.  It takes courage, strength, and faith in God, but it is possible.  If you are struggling with self injury or depression, please keep reading.  The next few points below can hopefully help you to discover a light at the end of the tunnel- a way out of an unending cycle.  

1.   No matter how you feel, you are loved.  When you're feeling depressed and alone, it's so easy to feel unloved.  The truth is, there are people who do love you, people who want to be there for you when you feel this way.  You have family members and friends who love you.  If no one else, then I love you, even though I don't know you personally.  I honestly do love you and I hurt for you.  Above all else, Jesus Christ loves you.  He loves you enough that He suffered and died for you.  He loves you no matter what you've ever done.   Deuteronomy 14:1,2 says, "Do not cut yourselves..., for you are a people holy to the Lord your God.  Out of all the peoples on the face of the earth, the Lord has chosen you to be His treasured possession."  Even though this verse was written for the people of Israel as a whole, it still applies to you as a Christian.  You are God's chosen possession... He doesn't want you to hurt.  He wants you to have peace and joy.  

2.   Even when you feel like God is far away, He has never left your side.  Guilt is often a huge issue for Christians who cut.  Aren't Christians supposed to be those on-fire believers who worship Jesus with every fabric of their lives?  They aren't supposed to be messed up people who have dark secrets that nobody knows about, right?  The perfect Christian is a complete myth.  Every Christian has problems, even if it doesn't seem like it from their outside appearance.  Everyone experiences trials throughout their lives.  You can still be a Christian and struggle with self injury.  It is an addiction that is hard to overcome.  Ask God to help you through this difficult time.  He is there for you.  He longs to hold you into His arms and take the pain away.  When you feel disconnected from God, continue to pray to Him, read your Bible, and go to church.  When you continue to worship God, even when He seems far away, you are expressing to Him that you still have faith in what He can do.  Hebrews 13:5 says, "God has said, 'Never will I leave you, never will I forsake you.'"  Keep your faith in Jesus and know that He will never lose faith in you.

3.   Talk to somebody about what you're going through.  Proverbs 27:17 says that just like iron sharpens iron, one person sharpens another.  Find someone who cares about you and who can give you accountability and encourage you to work through your emotions constructively, instead of through self injury.  Ask your friend for guidance, prayer, and understanding.  You may even need to find professional help.  Talk to your youth group leader or a teacher at your school.  If you feel comfortable, approach your parents about what you've been going through.  An experienced adult can help you learn to sort through your problems and find hope.   

4.   Search for a new way to cope.  You may cut to help you release your pent up emotions, it may be a way to punish yourself for the bad things you have done, or it may be a way to control something in your life when everything else seems to be crumbling all around you.  No matter why you cut, you are handling your problems the wrong way.  Take up music lessons, start a journal, go to the gym an hour a day... find something that can start to replace this habit, something that you can turn to when you feel like you need to vent your anger and hurt.

5.   Learn to love yourself again.  When you feel hatred and disgust for yourself, it is difficult to honestly want to stop hurting your body.  Take out a sheet of paper and write a list of at least ten things about why you deserve more than cutting.  It could be "I'm a loyal friend" or "I am a beautiful creation of God."  When you feel the urge to cut, remind yourself over and over that you are loved and that Jesus has planned so much more for your life.

6.  Learn to forgive yourself.  You may relapse.  You may go months without cutting and then mess up again.  When you fall, it is easy to feel angry at yourself and want to give up.  Instead of punishing yourself for messing up, take it into perspective.  Make a calendar of how long you've gone without messing up and congratulate yourself for making it that far.  Cutting is a hard addiction to overcome.  The closer you come to healing shows how strong you are becoming.  Jesus forgives you for every sin and mistake, so learn to forgive yourself as well.

If you have a friend who is struggling with self injury, don't give up on her.  She needs your encouragement and support.  Don't constantly talk about her problem, but occasionally let her know that you're there for her and are ready to listen when she needs to vent.  Ask your friend if you can go talk to an adult together, but don't try to force the issue unless you believe that her life is in danger or else the stress could cause her to cut again.  Spend more time with your friend.  Let her know that you love her and want to be around her.  Leave her encouraging notes.  Compliment her.  Whatever you do, don't criticize your friend about her self injury.  Judgmental remarks are likely to cause her to cut even more.  Instead, let her know that you're concerned about her safety and want her to stop because you care about her. 

If you have suspicions that your friend is suicidal, then that is another issue entirely.  If your friend is suicidal, then please tell an adult and get your friend help.  Making a friend angry- maybe even angry enough to not forgive you- is worth it if it means saving her life. 

You may be struggling with self injury right now.  If you are, then don't give up.  Self injury is a difficult thing to overcome, but it is possible.  You are loved and cherished by God.  Put yourself into His hands.  Hope can be found through the Lord.  He has so much more in store for you than you can possibly imagine.   

Jeremiah 29:11
"For I know the plans I have for you," declares the Lord, "plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future."