i sat in front of the mirror, naked. it's time to love myself. i looked at every inch of my body and picked something out that was great about that spot. i slowly rubbed lotion in circles all over my face and love radiated from my fingertips. i thought of all the compliments people gave me: soft skin, nice eyebrows, beautiful eyes, soft hair that always smells good. i told myself, "no one else is just like you. you are unique. no one else has those amber eyes just like yours. no one else has your soft skin. no one else has that scar under your bottom lip. no one has that tiny hole at the top of your left ear that was there since you were born. no one has the small chip in your front tooth. and you know you've always loved your face. stop listening to those demons. remember all the times you looked in the mirror and smiled at yourself because you felt beautiful." next, i rubbed lotion in circles all over the rest of my body and love radiated from my fingertips. i told myself, "no one else is just like you. you are unique. no one has that beauty mark you love where your right shoulder meets your neck. remember that beauty marks are just angel kisses and that an angel placed two on your skin where your heart is to make it soft and full of love. no one has that birthmark on the right side of your right breast. no one has that birthmark right above your belly button and a little to the right. no one has those same stretchmarks on your *******. it just means you're growing. no one has that trail of beauty marks on your left upper arm that you like to call a constellation. no one has your hands, your favorite part of your body because you just like the way hands look. no one has those same battle scars. they show that you have survived your hardest moments. don't regret them." so i kissed them instead. i kissed that one scar i hate many times, then looked myself in the eyes and said, "i forgive you." i moved down. "no one has those same stretchmarks on your hips. it just means you're growing. no one has those same scars on your thighs. no one has those same bruised knees. no one has the same anything as you." remember when we were younger; we used to look at ourselves in the mirror and we loved ourselves so much, we kissed the mirror to kiss ourselves. well, i'll do the same right now. i looked myself in the eyes and said, "you are beautiful. you are loved. you are lovely. you are exactly the way you're supposed to be. don't let anyone ever change anything about you. i love you. i love you. i love you."