Go ahead and hate selfies (hate that word) if you want, but I love to see Black women love up on themselves in a world who treats us as if our beauty shouldn't be! The other day, this older woman with a walker with a bright, yellow zebra and flower print dress asked if I know how to work an iPhone. She asked me to take her picture. She wanted to be under the tree. She threw her head back, smiled and posed. The leaves were shading her satiny dark chocolate almond face, barely a wrinkle. We changed direction. She threw that head back again. Tree still shading her. I wanted her to see herself, you know? We went to another tree, younger with leaves reaching up and out. This time when she threw her head back, this beautiful woman smiled the most magnificent smile, stuck her leg out and flung her fist all sassy on her hip! I had her take two more poses and she didn't hesitate! She then went to sit on her walker, thanked me and showed me the pics she took of herself. I showed her how to angle the phone down so she wouldn't have a big chin. We laughed. She told me they call her a "Facebook competitor." I told her she'll shut them down with her new pics.  She then showed me pics of her grandson's prom. I watched her upload her new pics. I thanked her and continued my morning walk.
Sometimes I see young Black girls taking pics of themselves on the train, my own daughter in the mirror or using the light from the window, my friends on Facebook, my own self- many of us who never see our images reflected back to us as positive, beautiful and even at all. I smile to myself each time I see this. We can get deeper, but it's really not that deep. You don't like it, scroll by fast, that's all. Life is short. It's the little things,  you know? Affirm yourself, no matter who you are, with whatever makes you feel good!

5/19/15