Here Goes Nothing...Literally

I guess I'll start by telling you about me, and why I'm doing this. My name is Shelby Rayburn and I am 16 years old. I go to a typical high school in a typical suburb, with my atypical friends; they're my everything. I am a cheerleader, a model, an NHS member, and the web editor for my school yearbook. Needless to say, I have plenty on my plate. Where am I supposed to find time for a blog? Here's where:

I love journalism, I have 3 published articles in a magazine and plenty more in my school's yearbook. I love photo journalism just as much as a I love copy, but being the new web editor this year, I figured it would be more beneficial if I spend a few more hours a week online.

As if I'm not busy enough, I have another plan working in the back of my mind. A plan that God has specifically put there through my own experiences as a teenage girl. Women can speak to girls and empower them all they want, I've been empowered through women and their testimonies. I think it's amazing. But who better knows the current situation of every quote-unquote "outcast" girl out there, better than one herself?

You heard it, I'm different. I'm not popular, I don't have "perfect" hair or "perfect" teeth, and certainly not a "perfect" body. Why put the word Perfect in quotes? here's why...

What is perfect?
Dictionary.com defines it as this:
"Conforming absolutely to the description or definition of an ideal type."

Conforming. I would hope you know what this means. simply Changing. Sounds easy. But trust me, I've tried to be this word "perfect" many times. It doesn't work. However, it seems to work for every other girl out there. You know what I'm talking about.

"Why can't my hair be just like hers?
"Why cant I get my makeup to stay on like that?"
"How come you can still see her amazing body in those sweats and mine makes me look like an avocado?"

You've all seen someone and thought this before, am I right? If you think you're not pretty enough, not smart enough, not good enough for that boy you like, not good enough for your parents to appreciate. If you've ever been put down for physical appearance or the way you do something, or if you just do something at all, trust me my friend, the world is not coming to an end. It's mearly starting.

I went through too much in Middle School and the beginning of high school to let anything thoughts similar to mine go through another young girls' mind. I thought I was useless and dumb and never going to make it out of the 8th grade and into high school alive. But it's because I had girls only slightly older than me telling me that I was so much better than I saw myself.

This world of teenagers needs a change. There is no "perfect" until you look in the mirror and see that everything beautiful in your life is standing right in front of you. Believe in God and yourself and trust me, there will be no greater love and no greater gifts in life than what you can take from that relationship.

I'll do my best to blog a couple times a week. Please help me get started by subscribing and feel free to comment or email me with suggestions, concerns, and questions!

You're a beauty queen, and that's all you need to know.