First, it impressed on me that my body is something that I own, not an ideal that I should strive to be. While there are entire industries built on the contrary, this one sentence reminded me that my body can change and evolve, but it will always be with me — on the beach or anywhere else. I don't have to be a certain size or shape to belong. If I want to take my body to the beach, I shouldn't let anyone stop me, and on top of that, every other body I see is worthy of praise and appreciation for what it does and where it takes someone. When I realized that any body is a "beach body," my confidence grew not only in view of myself, but also reflected in my view of others. I feel proud of the people around me and often think about how remarkable it is that we're all working towards loving ourselves more.