Alexis+Jane+Torre+张京晋

When I was a pre-teen1）， I read Seventeen and CosmoGirl！ religiously， dressed up2） at any chance I got， and went to the mall every week. I was very focused on looks and clothes， and， as most pre-teen and teenage females are， trying to be "pretty". Now， I look back at my former concerns and laugh at how materialistic3） I was. But it also gets me thinking about how the importance of looks is drilled into4） us from early on. In movies and shows， the actresses are not only just made to look gorgeous， but their characters are usually complimented5） on their looks by others frequently. In magazines， there are articles about "50 Ways to Get Pretty" and "Makeover Your Image". Even in literature， the female characters usually are attractive， with multiple guys vying6） for their affection7）. It seems as though it is a societal belief that life is better or love is easier to find just because you are pretty.

Back to my personal story， I got diagnosed8） with a skin condition9） called vitiligo in the middle of junior high. Vitiligo caused large white splotches10） on my legs， elbows and neck. There is no treatment for it that is 100 percent efficient， and the medication never fully worked on my condition. I started to wear long jeans as often as possible to cover my legs. I tried makeup to cover the white spots. I tried everything I could to hide my vitiligo because I knew that spotted legs and arms weren't "pretty". Two years ago， I finally decided to stop hiding my skin disease with jeans and just wear shorts， skirts and dresses. I stopped using makeup to disguise my vitiligo and just accepted my body the way that it was.

At the time， I thought I made this decision because I had a great summer experience with a college program that made me more confident in myself. While this definitely is not untrue， it is not the sole reason why I decided to be at peace with how I looked. That summer program that I attended in 2010 did not only boost my self-esteem but also made me more ambitious. I became concerned with taking on a rigorous11） course load， getting a job and doing more community service. Looks just stopped mattering so much to me when I realized how many more things I could be doing instead of fretting12）over something that I couldn't fix. And I stopped being so caught up in trying to make my legs， elbows and neck "pretty". "Pretty" became just another word， not some goal that I was expected to meet.

As teenagers， we often stress over13） our looks. We feel that we have to be "pretty". But while it can be fun to get all dressed up， it's important to remember that there truly are more important things in life than looks. Simply remember that "pretty" is just one， single word out of the entire English language.

我还未满13岁时就开始虔诚地阅读《17岁》和《都市女孩》（编注：这两本都是时尚杂志），只要逮住机会就打扮自己，而且每周都会去逛商场。我非常注重外貌和衣着，而且和大多数低龄女孩以及花季少女一样，我尽量让自己变“漂亮”。现在回首去看自己以前关心的那些事，不由嘲笑自己当时多么物质。但这也让我开始思考，我们是如何从很早的时候起就被灌输外貌至上这种思想的。在电影和电视节目里，女演员们不仅被打扮得光鲜亮丽，而且她们所饰角色的长相也往往会得到其他人的频频称赞。而杂志里有很多关于“50种方法让你变漂亮”和“如何化妆打扮”一类的文章。甚至在文学作品中，女性人物也往往都长得很好看，身边有好几位男性竞相追求，想要俘获她们的芳心。看起来似乎整个社会都相信，只要你漂亮，生活就会更美好，也更容易觅得爱情。

再来说说我自己的故事吧。上初中期间，我被诊断出患有一种叫白癜风的皮肤病。因为白癜风，我的双腿、双肘和颈部都出现了大面积的白斑。这种病没有100%有效的治疗方法，而药物对我的病情也根本没有彻底的疗效。于是我开始尽可能地常穿牛仔长裤，为的是把双腿遮住。我试过用化妆品来盖住白斑。为了把我的白斑藏起来，我试过我所能做的一切，因为我知道长了斑的胳膊和腿不“漂亮”。两年前，我终于决定不再用牛仔裤来隐藏我的皮肤病，而就只是穿上短裤、短裙和连衣裙。我也不再用化妆品来遮盖我的白斑，而就那样接受了我身体本来的样子。……