I kind of have a few wrinkles in this picture.
I'll say it. I'm grateful for my wrinkles.
At a towering 5'1, with baby face cheeks, and a high-pitched feminine voice, people often confuse me for being younger than I am.
One time, someone came up to me while I was working at a grocery store concerned that said grocery store was breaking child labor laws. They weren't. I was 23.
A lot of women think this a compliment.
I don't.
The problem with this whole way of thinking is that women are valued as objects.
So, why do people say, "You look young. No. It's a good thing."
Why would it be a good thing? I already have a relationship with a significant other who I love and adore. Why do I need to attract anyone else? Why is my youth so important? Why bring it up?
Look, if you accidentally get my age wrong, I'm not going to be really mad at you but if you start making assumptions about what I know because I look young, I'm going to be pissed.
Even worse, if you think that I'm not as capable.
The truth is that I love my body. I'm grateful for it but pretty regularly, people perceive me to be less capable because of my height and my appearance. These things are beyond my control.
If you make assumptions about me because of my appearance, well, that's discrimination.
And while I wish the world could recognize short baby-faced women as being capable, I also am grateful to have another year on me.
Happy Birthday to me!