This is Rachel Hollins with the youngest of her three children. Next to being a mom—which, she says, makes her immensely proud—she runs a "how-to" website. But it wasn't her household tips that brought her the most attention, rather from a photo her husband took…
The photo was taken during her summer vacation. At first glance, it's a pretty typical holiday photo at the beach. But it wasn’t just the photo, posted on Facebook shortly after it was taken, that unleashed a social media avalanche. More than anything, people were moved by the words that she wrote to accompany her picture:
“I have stretch marks and I wear a bikini. I have a belly that's permanently flabby from carrying three giant babies and I wear a bikini. My belly button is saggy... (which is something I didn't even know was possible before!!) and I wear a bikini. I wear a bikini because I'm proud of this body and every mark on it. Those marks prove that I was blessed enough to carry my babies and that flabby tummy means I worked hard to lose what weight I could. I wear a bikini because the only man whose opinion matters knows what I went through to look this way. That same man says he's never seen anything sexier than my body, marks and all. They aren't scars ladies, they're stripes and you've earned them. Flaunt that body with pride! #HollisHoliday”
On Facebook and Instagram the snapshot was shared more than a thousand times within minutes. After just four days, the number was 350,000. She had never expected such an explosion of support and praise.
"It grew like wildfire. I am totally humbled and overwhelmed by all the attention and so grateful that it’s lifting up other moms in a positive way. Hopefully these words help others to feel inspired and encouraged to be proud of their bodies no matter what they look like!”
Share these genuine words from this fearless wife and mother. You might help someone who needs a boost about positive self-image.
