Beauty is self love

What does it mean to be beautiful in today’s world? I asked myself this question as I prepared for Pildora’s editorial with Chelsea Werner, a 4X Special Olympics Champion turned New York City model. As I scrolled through her pictures I was intoxicated by her smile, awed by her achievements and proud of her ability to break through so many physical barriers and social stigmas. 

“How different our world would be if more of us could be as strong as this young woman? ”

I, along with 200,000 other followers on Instagram, was absolutely mesmerized by Chelsea. Her bright personality and unshakable drive were contagious. I couldn’t wait to finally meet this very talented, inspirational and beautiful human being. 

Besides preparing the studio and preparing the Pildora production team I did a little more research on Chelsea. What I found was that there is much more to her than an addicting smile. I discovered countless stories of people living with down syndrome all over the world. I was shocked to learn that there are many people with down syndrome who live absolutely normal lives. This condition does not denote a lack of intelligence, nor does it mean that they are happy or unhappy all the time. It varies with every case. The stigma and stereotyping of this marginalized population is usually based on the notable physical attributes, misinformation or ignorance. 

When Monday morning finally arrived, it was time for our shoot and I was so nervous and excited that my heart skipped a few beats. I felt like I was about to meet tinker bell. I saged the studio, prepared a Halloween gift bag for Chelsea, opened the windows to let the light in and then put on my favorite music. Everything was ready. 

Finally, Chelsea and her Mom walked in at 10:30am. From the moment she walked in until the moment she left Chelsea carried a powerful energy with her. As she got her make up done, she danced around to the music playing over the speakers. We were all excited to start shooting. Her first look was ready. She hopped off the seat and looked in the mirror.

“She looked beautiful and she knew it. ”

Her smile grew bigger as she pointed at herself in the mirror and started dancing again and laughing. She swung her hair around in love with the freshly primed curls. She looked at me and smiled as to say “ready!”

We began shooting and the energy in the room lit up. The day was non-stop laughter, fun and realness. At one point, Chelsea asked us to play the theme song from Aladdin.  As soon as it played, her body lit up and her face glowed as if she really was Jasmine. I couldn’t imagine that anything could ever stand in her way. I felt an instant connection to Chelsea, like a sister I had never met. I didn’t want the day to end and I didn’t want to say goodbye. At one point she looked at me straight in the eyes and touched my nose with her finger and said “you’re sweet.” For some reason, my heart dropped!

After she left, I sat there smiling. Had I just met an angel? It then occurred to me that contrary to all stereotypes, this is what it means to be beautiful in 2019—true beauty is inner beauty. Indeed, Chelsea is the essence of true beauty on multiple levels. When juxtaposed to what Society tells us we need to be beautiful--a Kim Kardashian ass, Kylie Jenner lips, and a 24-inch-waist. No offense to these beautiful high-profile ladies, but Chelsea Werner is a brighter version of beauty. There is no pretense or posturing, she simply loves herself. It is amazing that this young woman with down syndrome can teach us so much about self-love and beauty.

“ She is a woman who looks in the mirror and loves what she sees. ”

She has overcome obstacles. She was born with down-syndrome and decided to be a badass gymnast anyway. And, oh, a fashion model too.  

What I learned from her that day was that beauty is self-love and making the best of the gifts and challenges of our lives.  

Thank you, Chelsea, for shining so bright and for representing Pildora as we change the planet together.