A few months ago, I received an email from a girl named Ally Marks.
Ally explained to me that she is a student at Smith College, and as part of an assignment, she wanted to “write” a Dear Body letter while videotaping it. In doing research on the project, she came across the Letters To My Body website, and asked me for permission in featuring some of the content on the site. I was unsure at first about saying ‘yes’ to something like this, but this statement by Ally is what swayed me to agree:
I really want to connect my story with other peoples’ stories as well as bring more attention to body issues and eating disorders that does not serve to glamorize or victimize like the media tends to do.
Since this very statement sums up the reason why I decided to start Letters To My Body in the first place, I agreed.
Within a couple of weeks, I received another email from Ally letting me know that she had finished the video, and providing a link so that I could watch it. Life took over, and I didn’t have an opportunity to watch the video until this morning.
Now, I wish that I didn’t wait so long.
This video is approximately 5 minutes long, and I had chills the entire time. The video is beautifully produced and thoughtful. Ally says so many things, without speaking even a word.
If you watch only one video online this year, please let it be this one…
Letter to my Body from Ally Marks on Vimeo.
Helene on May 28, 2010
Oh My God. I am going to be 70 in a couple of months. I can remember when I was 16 and weighed 130 pounds and thought I was fat. I remember all the things I’ve done to be thin. All the time I’ve hated myself. All the cookies I’ve eaten. All the diets I’ve tried. I now weigh about 280 pounds and am about to go to a high school reuion and I am so freaked out that I was prom queen and pretty and thin and now I am old and fat and I am so ashamed of my body. I am so sure people will make fun of me. My ex-husband talked me into coming and I keep thinking that he wants me there (even paid my airfare) to show people how lucky he was to get rid of me. I just want to feel safe and comfortable in this body. I only have a couple of weeks before this event. Thank you for this video…by the way, I am still working, full time, at this age. I am a trial attorney. I am very accomplished in my life and all I can think if is how fat I am.
katrina on June 11, 2010
i can’t even watch the rest of this video…. i’m so touched.. tears pour from my eyes
jamie on July 3, 2010
this was so beautiful & it made me cry. thank you
We’ve all got dreams « Searching for peace… on July 3, 2010
[...] also watched this really moving video on this website, Letters To My Body. It was really very sad but it made me [...]
Heather on August 20, 2010
I normally talk about my body image issues, my past with food, and how I feel about my body from a very rational standpoint, almost as if I am a case study and I’m analyzing myself from an objective place. ‘Well when I was X years old, I weighed Y, because I did Z to myself.’ But this video reminded me how very emotional my rocky relationship with my body has been. It reminded me that it wasn’t just always about controlling my food. While watching this video, I actually started crying, which I haven’t done when talking about my body in a long time. This video was so great… I think I’m going to need to write my own Letter to My Body, because after all these years, there are still a LOT of things I need to tell her.