Since the days of Disney princesses, I've wanted to be a mermaid like Ariel

Adventurous like Jasmine

Fearless like Mulan

Be able to see the good inside of people like Belle

Their small frames and cartoon beauty 

Filled me with hope and wonder

I sucked in my stomach to look like them

I wore princess costumes on Halloween

I tried to be a character from a fairytale that I knew I could never be

These childhood antics changed me

I know I don't look the way others do

In the 'real world' everyone has to have some sort of appeal;

Physical of course

No one cares about 'what's on the inside' anymore

Times have changed and so have I

I like to think I've changed for the better

I dress how I want to

I wear my make up differently

I act differently, but I've come to realize it's okay to be who I am

Being by myself on weekends is okay with me

I may be alone, but that doesn't mean I'm lonely

I don't have to conform

I work out now, I eat better than before, my confidence grows every day

and though I want to make a few lifestyle changes, it's only because I want to change myself

for the better

I don't have to be perfect to be my own kind of princess