A skinny girl is not sexy

In this part of the globe, skinny is not necessary sexy. Overseas, people see skinny as hot but here in Naija, we see skinny as hunger and malnutrition. I have weighed 45kg for 5 years now and i'm about 5ft 6" so I'm a very practical example of a Naija skinny girl (Even though it's not intentional). Along the line of my skinny life, I have encountered various opinions and gestures as regards my weight. I can remember a day when one man (a total stranger) offered me money to eat because he thought I was going to "break" if I didn't eat at that moment.

If you think skinny is sexy and that Beyonce, Rihanna and the likes are termed sexy because they are skinny then you have to see me to become a better judge. The last time I saw Beyonce (on instagram of course) she was not half as skinny as I am.

However, in this short piece, I have put together some challenges that skinny girls like me face on a daily basis and how everybody reiterates the fact that skinny is not sexy directly or in directly.

People call you all sorts of names.

This started happening to me since I was in primary school and I'm still living with it till today. They call me skeleton, toothpick, lekpa, doguwa, broomstick (not even the entire broom, just a stick), selfie stick (I consider this far better than the rest).

"Don't you think you should be a model?"

I've heard this a thousand times. At first I felt I was so pretty that's why the whole world wanted me to model. But then I realised that they meant I couldn't survive in any other field aside modelling. Someone once told me that models don't need energy because all they ever do is smile/frown or pose/walk and that it'll prevent me from "breaking".....

"You'll break in the 'other room'"

Everyone still believes I'm single because I'm skinny. A very close friend told me that men are scared because I might not be able to handle them in the other room and I'm like 'WTF'!!!!! What has skinny even got to do with matters of the other room?

I'm a regular customer to my tailor's.

I visit my tailor any time I visit the market so my clothes can be ammended and adjusted. So I don't just spend money to buy clothes, I also spend money to ammend them.

People don't believe swallow is my favorite food. They believe i live on indomie and junk alone. Anytime I decide not to wear make-up, I'm mistaken for a secondary school sick girl. Everyone seems to leave a final remark on my weight... "You'll blow when you start having babies".

I'm very proud of my skinny and I think size and preference are twins that shouldn't fight all the time. If we prefer someone plumpy or skinny, we should keep it in our thoughts rather than making people feel bad about themselves cause people really do care about what they weigh.

Skinny is sexy just as plumpy is sexy, the only difference is in who's watching.