One of the most well-known idioms is “beauty belongs to the eye of the beholder.” The idiom means that the physical aspects of a person are truly perceived by themselves. I sincerely believe this idiom holds truth.

Recently, I was scrolling on my Instagram feed and stumbled upon a video. The video was of a young woman shaving her wavy dark brown hair. The video captioned “Beauty is not defined by your hair” (@chinazinn). I was amazed and proud of this woman and this video because I too am bald. The reason for my bald head is different from this young woman’s, however, we still have the same looking head. I decided to comment how proud and gracious this video made me, however, the comments above mine appalled me. There were many disgustingly mean comments stating the young woman was “ugly with or without hair,” a “disgrace,” “stupid,” and the insults continued, getting meaner. I’m not usually one to combat ignorant comments, but in this instance I felt I had to.

Beauty is based on perspective. Everyone will see it differently. Beauty is subjective and everyone has their own opinion and preferences. However, just because someone doesn’t fit your standard of beauty doesn’t mean you should attack them. Nowadays, it seems as if the people who are perceived as “ugly” tend to be the ones who look different. Different, meaning their looks are outside the norm.

I simply don’t understand why people would spend time attacking someone who looks different. Take the example of the young woman who shaved her hair. Her attempt to send out a meaningful message was taken the wrong way by other people, causing her to be verbally attacked by them. I simply can’t comprehend why a video of a woman attempting to make a statement garners so much hate; did it affect or harm you in any way? Does insulting a person you have never met make your day better? Does calling a woman ugly and stupid for her decisions make you feel better about yourself? Was wasting your time verbally attacking a stranger worth it?

Beauty belongs to the eye of the beholder. If someone sees it differently, it doesn’t make them any less worthy than you. Beauty is not just a physical aspect. Beauty to me is a mix of mental, emotional, and personal aspects. Someone with an infectious laugh or big heart is beautiful to me. To me, size and shape don’t matter, beauty is better looking different. If someone disagrees with me, that’s okay. It is my opinion, however attacking them wouldn’t make my opinion seem any better, vice versa.

It’s okay to look and be different, but it’s not okay to disrespect people’s differences. You don’t have to accept people’s differences and appearances, but you do have to respect it. Commenting negativity doesn’t change the way the person looks or makes you better. It simply brings pain.

I will always think this young woman is beautiful and that people who look different aren’t a disgrace. Bias aside she rocked the bald look. It didn’t make her look any less of a woman. It highlighted her facial features. It’s not easy exposing your face to the world. Everyone will see every blemish, dark circles, indented lines, and crevices on your face. You can’t hide behind your hair, you simply show who you really are. That goes for everyone who gets their crowned jewel, their prized possession, or their mask removed. You simply have to let the whole world see who you are. Everyone is beautiful inside and out. Everyone has their flaws. Everyone has their preference. Judging others for their preferences will never do anything, except harm everyone including yourself. So if someone disagrees with how you perceive someone’s appearance, don’t attack their opinion, respect it. Appearances don’t hurt you, so why hurt others?