#576 Appreciating the beauty of all your body’s scars and scratches

My friend Joey got his face ripped off last week.

Yeah, while staring at his cheek in the mirror a few months back he noticed a a small rubbery bump below the surface of his skin. Few months, few phone calls, few appointments later he found himself under the knife in a five-hour surgery getting a chestnut sized tumor slowly untied and airlifted out of a knotty nest of nerves in a high stakes game of Operation.

Thankfully he’s okay and he’s all better and he’s managed to bounce over a pretty bumpy hill in life. We were all pretty nervous but he’s come out clean on the other side.

Plus, now he’s got a crazy scar from his ear down to his neck to show for it.

And sure, over the years the stitches will drop out, hair might grow over, and the lines on his face could slowly fade away. But he’s really got a reminder every day of how lucky he is to be alive. He added some dents and scratches to his life story.

And unless you’re a baby-powder-smelling ball of smooth skin and giggles, I’m betting your flesh and bones is covered with some gashes, scratches, scabs and stains, too.

Maybe it’s that fleshy scar on your hand from the eighth grade fistfight. You were on the bus back from shop class throwing pockets of sawdust around when tempers flared and a couple headlocks later you tripped and hit the ground.

Maybe it’s the ghost of that Giant Zit of ’97 on your forehead. Did you squeeze it too hard before prom and end up with a bad cover-up job? If so, maybe you can still find your old friend in that photo album, wedged tightly between up-dos, wrist corsages, and freshly pressed tuxes.

Maybe it’s a blurry tattoo you got with distant friends you don’t speak to anymore. You were young, you were graduating, you wanted a memento of getting through a tough year together. And you got it.

It’s the zippery line up your groin from the hernia, the tingly bump in your collarbone from the monkey bars, or the big birthmark on your back you’ve hidden under bathing suits for years.

But whatever yours are, wherever yours are, and however you got them, one thing’s for sure: your bumps and scratches are part of your life and part of your story. They’re part of your lows… and part of your glories. Yes, they’re memories of bad decisions and reminders of good ones. And they all come together in a nicely wrapped package that we like to call… you.

See, we’re all a bit bent, we’re all a bit busted, we’re all a bit broken, we’re all bit rusted. Underneath all the crinkly jeans and wrinkly shirts are beautifully personal collections of hairy legs, scratchy scars, and spotty skin.

So take a second to stop today and love all your scabs and patches. Just kiss those moles and rub those bumps and smile at all your scratches.

AWESOME!

Psst, take a second to check for lumps today.

Photos from: here, here, and here

115 thoughts to “#576 Appreciating the beauty of all your body’s scars and scratches”

  1. I have a ton of scars. A few birthmarks (the hemangioma kind) – some removed, some still there…a scar on the back of my neck and my butt from neck surgery….two dots above my eyes from said neck surgery (halo)….scar on the bridge of my nose from falling on the sidewalk at school a few years back….and then just the scars of life.

  2. I have a scar on my left calf from running away from a kid with warts in the 3rd grade. And about a month ago I was walking to work when I tripped. Now I have a HUGE scar on my right knee from that, actually I took the scab off that just the other day. Oh… and various other scars of course.

  3. I have a sixteen inch scar down my back from scoliosis surgery, and oddly enough I really love it. Its something no one else has. And I did what you said, checking for lumps, and found one. But its not cancer like it thought it might be, and doesn’t even have to be removed!

  4. Cool post. I am very fond of the style of your web site, is this a template thats avaliable for free? I am going to begin my own site up soon so i’m looking into different choices! Should I use WordPress or Blogengine? Any opinion would be really prized. Thanks.

  5. I love the scar on my left breast from a car accident because no one knows its there but me. and its shaped like a heart which is kinda cool seeing as my real heart is right underneath it.

  6. I love this site, and I’ve enjoyed reading other posts about scars.

    I have the usual chicken pox scars (didn’t get until I was 23!) and moles removed.

    The two scars I’m proud of are:

    Forehead: I was about 7 and I sneezed and hit my head on the edge of my parents’ bathroom counter.

    Palm of right hand: I was volunteering at an animal sanctuary and was spraying a golden tabby tiger’s cage (his name is Midas) with a water house. Midas reached out to get the hose and got me instead. It wasn’t a deep cut, but the scar is still there and reminds me of all the fun I had while I volunteered there.

  7. I have alot of scars from when I suffered from self injury. Everyday I see them. I hate myself more and more.

    1. Yes. I wish I could figure out how to be thankful or at least ok with them. I really can’t convince myself they are awesome in some way, or tell some great story. They just remind me of bad times and wasted years. I guess they could mean I made it through, and still here, despite everything. But somehow this just doesn’t stick. When I see them, I don’t think. I just feel sad. Maybe, someday, with practice…

  8. I just discovered this site at 3 am while up feeding my infant son (iPods are awesome for surfing the net one handed). I flipped back to see what was awesome on feb 6th, the day he was born. Since his birth was the only awesome thing That day I looked to this post and saw that body scars were being appreciated. My son was born by an unplanned c-section, and until last night I did not think my scar was awesome. Thanks for spinning a new perspective for me!

  9. I discovered your blog this past weekend and had a 1000 Awesome Things marathon to catch up to #520! This one is by far my favorite of them all – I keep coming back to it. It’s not just the physical scars that make us who we are, it’s the experiences and emotional scars we carry with us. And it’s when, through life’s scars, that we can be our authentic, raw selves – well, let’s just say it’s AWESOME! I love your writing because it’s simple, honest, and raw – you have nothing to hide – you share everything broken and beautiful.

  10. I have 2 small scars from dog bites on my face, a little line in my thumb from slamming it in a truck door, a discolored spot on my knee from endlessly picking at a scab (I was a weird kid) and one next to my bellybutton from being bitten by a centipede. Nasty little thing gave me 2 ginormous, scalding hot blisters filled w/ venom that lasted almost a week.

  11. its comforting to know that everybody in life is guaranteed at least a little bit of terrific physical pain

  12. I have a scar inbetween my knuckles on my left hand from sticking my hand into a vacuum cleaner when I was a baby, a fleshy lump on my left foot when I sliced it with a license plate, and a burn scar on the right side of my hip that looks like Hawaii from when my friend spilled scalding hot water on me.

    I love the way all of these look and am proud to show them off and tell their stories.

  13. Being the proud owner of some scars and odd marks, I say that this is a most excellent entry. I love telling people (when asked) the gory details of where they came from and seeing “Gross!” written across their faces. Especially after I show them how my thrice-broken left arm can move due to the bone healing crookedly. Hint: in a way it’s not supposed to :)

  14. I have a scar that runs right across my abdomen, its dark and obvious and looks like my body was cut in two…the reason was from a miracle operation as an infant that saved my life. I’ve never known my body to not have this scar and without it, i wouldnt be me and i wouldnt be alive.

  15. The double cross of Lorraine over my stomach is my reminder of being saved from death by starvation in my second week of life. It’s also a reminder of how far surgery has come: 30 years before I arrived, few pyloric stenosis babies survived, and today this repair can be done via keyhole surgery. But then, this leaves just three pockmark scars which is far less eye-catching and probably won’t give rise to as many yarns.

  16. I got a scar that looked like a lightning bolt when I was 5. I was involved in a car accident on the way to a playground and had to go to the hospital. I used to be so embarrassed by my scar because it was on my forehead and would stand out white when my face was red. Then the Harry Potter books came out and I became proud of my scar. To this day, if some one asks what my favorite scar is, I say my lightning bolt because I am Harriet Potter :)

    1. I was just about to say no, that’s Harry Potter XD
      That’s pretty cool that you got a lightning bolt scar, I wouldn’t be embarrassed by it! :)
      But anyways, I have this giant scar on my stomach from playing with a pocket knife when I was 6 and I had to get it stitched up. It still won’t go away, but for some odd reason I love it! Is that weird?

  17. When i was 2 i ran into a doorpost (i was groggy and i was running into my room, ok?) The dr had to superglue it back together. I still have the scar on my forehead to prove it :) And whats more, my best friend did the exact same thing when she was 2 1/2 – its on the other side of her forehead though.

  18. I have a giant scar on my forehead (that i hide by wearing my hair parted to the left) that i got when i was four and never went away. I have moments where i hide it and moments where i show it off (its my only scar thats not covered by clothing) i enjoy telling its story. I was 4 and jumped on a couch and tripped over a cushion and landed face first into the corner of my grandparents very old wooden tv. I still remember a waterfall of blood in front of my eyes.

  19. I have a scar on my foot from when I slipped at a water park, and on my knees too. And a tiny gray mark on my knee from when I stabbed myself with a pencil

  20. Kinda on the subject, but when you get a bruise and every day you wake up with a different colour on it

  21. I’ve had the same problem back in 98′. This is how it looks now:
    http://img824.imageshack.us/i/56777210.png/
    Operation lasted for 7.5 hours and was 100% sucess. Only consequences are very mild Bell’s palsy from time to time, and blush on left cheek when I eat something tasty :D
    Pardon my english, and tell him he will be just fine ;)

  22. Four years after a breast cancer diagnosis leaves one with a sizable number of scars… the 2″ port scar on my chest where they infused the chemo is now a butterfly. I’d rather people see a whimsical butterfly than a sad red slash. If I can figure out where to put it, I might have “NED” tattoo’d somewhere when I reach my 5 year mark this summer… No Evidence of Diesease! :) I hope the same can be said of Joey!

  23. Hm..I’ve got a birthmark on my back. It’s blue. ‘Cause I’m an awesome ninja. And I have a scar from when I was younger. I was at my swimming class, and some kid who didn’t know how to swim mistakenly kicked me, and apparently that kid’s toenail was viciously sharp. And that scar from that kick is still there…At least I now know how dangerous toenails can be.

  24. Very proud of my bikini line scars – each one representing one of my 3 gorgeous boys delivered by C section

  25. Mine started at birth. My body is a road map, (inside and out), of I don’t know what to compare to, so I’ll just say… a “remarkable vessel” I’m grateful to for taking me this far on my journey.
    I also have 2 tattoos I Love for what they represent to me is all good!
    God bless you Joey and all who are survivors of every form of battle wound.
    Does anyone remember the 1970’s version of “Jaws” when they all compare scars?

  26. just remembered to click the follow-up comments box.
    Wonder, is there a way through word press to have them all ticked without my having to go back becuase we’ve a very slow old computer and in the mountains we’re still on dial up; which is like rotary to us but jerassic in the techy world?!
    PLEASE!

  27. I have a scar on my left knee cuz me and my cuzin were bikin in kelowna and I fell and slid across the rode it hurt so bad but I LUV MY SCAR I have a ton of other scars too cuz I play hockey!!!! XD

  28. I can’t believe I haven’t commented on this one yet!! Where have I been?
    ~I have a long, skinny scar around my left knee where one of my brothers threw a cat in my lap. The cat was not happy and neither was I.
    ~I have a scar on my upper lip and on the under side of my chin from my first wreck. I lost control of my car, hit a parked car, ran sideways into a wooden building, and then hit a towing truck and moved it 8 feet backwards…. On my very first Mother’s Day. Thankfully that’s all that happened to me.
    ~I have a scar on my forehead above my left eye from my second wreck. I was T-boned by a van on my way to get breakfast for my co-workers. The hit my drivers side right at my door and spun me around once before I hit the curb. My door was caved in so far I couldn’t open it.
    ~My fourth and biggest scar is from giving birth to my second child. After 18 hours in labor, the doctors finally decided to cut me open and give me a c-section. This is my biggest scar, and this is my most loved scar. I worked so hard to get this scar….

  29. Ok honestly these ‘awesome’ thing are frankly stupid
    Like taking your bra off?
    I’m a guy
    Undoing you ponytail
    Again I’m a guy
    Watching old people swim
    That’s just wrong
    And this not many people like there scar marks

  30. I was born with a birth defect called spina bifida, having this disability has meant about a dozen, maybe more surgeries over my first 20 years of life. This post reminds me to be thankful for the doctors who took such great care of me all these years and left the scar, not the problem. It reminds me that the only reason to think twice about my outward scars is to be thankful I lived through the times that left those scars and for everything that is a part and has been a part of that journey. It is a wake up call that physical and emotional scars are not who you are….they’re a testimony to what you’ve overcome and what you will become because of that. This is a reminder I desperately needed to keep moving forward confidently in life, and for that I thank you Neil and 1000 Awesome Things for taking notice. :)

  31. Thx guys I had an amazing b day the other IM 11 NOW!!!! Hehe …I have lots of scars I scraped me knee the other day!!! It really hurt :( no one seemed to care tho

    1. Woo-Hoo! #11-very good number!
      People really care here and living awesomely, your sweet dreams will come true!
      I care about your boo-boo, and now we even have some matching scars, that makes you and I kindred!
      Have a happy day and great 11th. year!

  32. A child-hood friend who’s going through a time, just shared this quote with me and I wish to share it here:
    “Scars remind us where we have been…they do not have to dictate where we are going.”
    Awesome:)

  33. My 2-years-old son has a scar on his chest due to open-heart surgery when he was just 8 days old, and another one from a year later, when he had his finger accidentally cut off. I could not be more proud.
    Thanks.

  34. I have crazy stretch marks all over my thighs and bottom that I have had since I was 13 from having a kidney disease that caused me to swell up and gain a lot of water weight very fast. I can’t wear shorts or skirts or swim suits without people staring and asking “oh my what’s that?” but everyday it’s a reminder of the fact that I survived, and my kidneys are doin’ alright :)

  35. I’m very pleased to have read this post, and to read a handful of comments that everyone else has left.

    I think you’re completely right, about how scars are reminders of stories in our lives. It took me a while to start loving my body for all it was, including the scars, bumps, bruises, and ‘imperfections’.

    I wish I found this post earlier when I needed it most, and I hope that other people who are reading this can begin to love themselves as much as they truly deserve to. Just wanted to say thank you very much for your post :)

    A few years ago I fell in the shower and bit through my lower lip. It’s probably the worse injury I ever had. My scar reminds me of everything I was going through during that point in time of my life. It’s a reminder of hardships, but strengths as well. And I’m happy to have passed that hurdle because now I’m able to see much more out of life than I ever have before.

    My father has also recently had brain surgery, twice, for emergency measures. He’s been left with a huge scar on his head, and various scars on his body because of all the the tubing and support he was on before. I’m happy to say that he’s doing much better now, and soon he will finally be able to return home.

    Scars are the marks of warriors.

  36. I have lots of scars and been under the knife more than once. Every time i look at my scars i feel a little bit invincible and strong, like i can endure anything!

  37. I have over 100 scars from cutting/burning myself. I also have a bit of a jail house pentagram tattoo. You’d think with all of the ctisisum i get from having them, I would hate them. But i wouldn’t trade them for the world.

  38. I have a blog on blogger and each time i go off to my blog it counts it as a page outlook smooth when im logged in. How do i build it only calculate the views from additional people?.

  39. My 4 years old son has a scar on his chest from life-saving heart surgery he got when he was 8 days old. The best reminder of how lucky we are.

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