When I decided to start writing my blog, I realized I had to change my Instagram name into something that fit better with my vision. I had lots of ideas, and I knew I wanted something connected to the body as well as my spiritual side. Pear and Thyme isn’t just a cute and catchy name, but it holds a lot of meaning for me, too.
When I was in middle school, we had a day where professionals would come and talk to us about their jobs. I remember a man talking to my class about the shapes of our (girls and women) bodies. I think he may have been a screenwriter, but I'm not entirely sure what job he was supposed to be talking to us about, but I do remember this part of the conversation very distinctly. He told us that as we got older, we'd want to have hour glass shaped bodies, but that most of us would end up as pears or apples, and of that group, the pears would be a rarity. He said that there was nothing we could do about it.
Moira is so great, isn't she? I wish she had come to my middle school instead of fruit metaphor guy.
This was a MAN talking to a middle school class of boys and girls about the shape of WOMEN'S bodies on a day that was supposed to inspire us about jobs. I think he went on to say how impossible it is to make it in the world of screenwriting/creative writing or whatever, somehow very loosely tying it to how women will never get the bodies they want. It was BIZARRE, and it was the first time I'd ever heard women's bodies being described as fruit. I began wondering if I was going to be a pear, or an apple, or the elusive hourglass. Not once did I wonder what fruit or inanimate objects boys wished they could look like, or the fact that it was weird that a man was talking to us about this on job day (although I definitely realized how odd it was as an adult). What I learned was that my writing was pointless, and that I'd end up with an "apple" body, whatever that meant, so job day was quite a bummer.
Am I going to find any excuse to use a Moira gif in this blog post? Why yes, yes I am.
After all these years, I still see women's bodies being compared to fruit, and this not only LITERALLY objectifies women, but it also assumes that there are set body "types" out there for women. I know that there are women who may have a similar body to mine, with wide hips and a smaller torso, and I can see how lumping women into certain body types, like a pear, can be helpful to figure out what clothes work for them. For example, I always have problems with dresses. If the hips are wide enough, then there is WAY too much room in the breast area. With jeans, if they fit my hips, there will be a big gap due to my waist size. So, identifying as a pear shape can help me to find others who might identify with this shape, and we can share ideas, clothing brands, and sob stories of our struggles to find clothes that fit. But even within that group, there is so much variety because no human body is the same. And as far I as I know, I don't hear about men worrying about becoming a fucking apple.
Just doing a quick Google search on pear shapes brings up some problematic results:
I could dissect and analyze each of these search questions, but I feel like they pretty much speak for themselves. I just want everyone who reads this post to know that your self worth has nothing to do with what fruit your body may or may not resemble.
Here's to taking "pear" back! No matter what your body looks like, you are worthy. You can wear whatever you want. There is no "best" body shape for a woman. You are not a bad thing.
That man on job day made me feel scared of my own body shape, like it was some kind of shitty lottery I was bound to lose, and he also made me feel like my love of writing was pointless. But, I've worked hard to shed those harmful, unhelpful thoughts.
Part of my decision to call this blog Pear and Thyme was related to my love of pears, too. I love pear desserts, drinks, baked goods, you name it. I did some researching into the symbolism of pears as well. Pears and pear trees have symbolized many things, like prosperity, wisdom, grace, health, and longevity. Through my research into pears, I discovered some interesting history about the Nahk people who worshiped pear trees. It was fascinating to dig into the cultural history of pears, and honestly, I could go on and on about it, haha.
Interesting historical fact: pear trees were thought to be a home for spirits.
But I digress! Through this research and my own reflection about my body shape, I decided that I wanted to use the word "pear" because it stands for many beautiful, interesting things, and to reclaim it from its current negative connotation. So, despite it all, here I am, a fat "pear" woman, writing and writing and writing.
Stay tuned for another blog post about why "thyme" is a part of my blog's name! Do you have an experience related to this topic? I'd love to hear about it! Please feel free to share that in the comments. Thanks for reading!
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