Svelte

Svelte (svelt) adj. (Fr) 1. slender; lithe 2. suave

Growing up, that word came up a lot. It was the word my mother used to describe a tall, thin woman. It was the word my teen boyfriend used to describe what he'd like me to become.* It was a word I never thought I'd hear used to describe me at age 47.
Thanks to Linda, my co-worker, for making my day yesterday. She saw me on the dock as we were unloading our trucks, and said, "You're looking very svelte lately!"
Oh! You could have knocked me over with a feather! Up until now, any word anyone has used to describe me sounded unreal. I've been called "skinny" and it didn't register that maybe I was getting there. Although "skinny" is not necessarily a complimentary word. Maybe "fit" or "healthy" sound better to me. "Skinny" sounds like you're sickly.
Anyway, the word svelte is a word that sums up exactly what my goal has been all this time. When I was 256 lbs, I never thought I'd see the day when someone used that word to describe me! I was never svelte as a teen, certainly not svelte in my 20s and 30s, and up until the last 8 or so months, I was hardly svelte. I was unhealthy, bloated, and pale. The farthest thing from svelte. My 5' 10" was almost embarrassing, because I always considered myself an Amazon; too tall, and too heavy. Now, my height is attractive again. You gotta be tall to be svelte, right?
Ahhh... how nice to be to this point. I'm so looking forward to the rest of my time on this planet, now that weight is not an obstacle. Holy cow! I can do anything!
Oh, and by the way... I weighed in at 173.2 this morning! Woohoo!



* See "Boots" entry, March '10.