Dance

Brody is two years and nine months old.

Brody is a boy.

Brody has discovered what makes him a boy.

Brody likes to dance naked and celebrate his boyness.

Yes, bath-time, potty-time, and changing clothes has been taken to a whole new level in Brodyland. It’s actually pretty funny, and completely innocent, although I’ve decided that it’s never too early to learn what’s appropriate and, well, what isn’t.

Last night, fresh out of the bath and smelling sweet, I wrestled him through his latest naked dance and tried to dry him off.

“I naked! I naked!” (wiggle, wiggle, wiggle, swing hips, wiggle wiggle)

“Yes you are, Brody! How about we get some jammies on?”

“But I dancing, Mimmie! I like me!“

And I sat back on my haunches and let him go. Free and uninhibited, he danced with his whole body in toddler free-form, reveling in the wonder of himself.

When was the last time you danced because “I like me?” In America, home of the self-loathing, it seems like it’s against the law to feel comfortable in your own skin, so is that even allowed? Will we be busted by the Comparison Police if we dare to bust a move?

Ladies and gentlemen, we have been fearfully and wonderfully made. Our bodies are miracles that fully function and operate without our even being aware. Where, along the way, did we stop marveling over them and start complaining?

Take care of what you have, enjoy it to its fullest extent, and maybe, just maybe, when nobody’s looking, unwrap it and dance because “I like me!” Celebrate your you-ness, no matter how it stacks up to someone else’s version of perfection. Because, in the wisdom of Dr. Seuss…

Today you are you
That is truer than true
There’s no one alive
Who is youer than you!