C'est moi

I got a new phone for my birthday. A few days later I took a selfie of me and Koy, and thought to myself, "You don't look too bad, Snell." (Snell is what I call myself when I'm talking to myself.) But then I discovered that my new phone has a standard "touch up" feature that automatically smooths out and brightens complexions. I had no idea, and I felt so betrayed. It reminded me of the last time we took Snell family photos, and the photographer thought it necessary to photoshop my arms down to a more acceptable size.
This made me ponder about a few things:
1. Constantly seeing "perfect" images of ourselves and others only leads us to feelings of inadequacy and competition. It's unhealthy and unrealistic and we shouldn't buy into it.
2. Never compare yourself to others based on what you see on social media. For all you know, that "gorgeous" girl you graduated high school with used "touch up" mode to hide 50 extra pounds and a mustache.
3. I have a little souvenier on my body from the pregnancy/birth of each of my children. Alaina left a freckle on my temple and a zillion stretch marks. Jesse gave me permanent bags under my eyes from the sleep deprivation, and about twenty more stretch marks. Koy's mark is a wallet-sized patch of varicose veins on my right lower leg. It's so visible that most people ask me if I got kicked in the shin. Sure, it's not ideal, but that's mortality for you. All are prices I would happily pay for the blessing of having them in my life.

Physical flaws just give us character anyway. I guess the one perk is that now have an idea of what I'll look like after the resurrection.