Initially I was contemplating on talking about my second week at the gym but while I was typing the entry out, one particular thought piqued my interest.

“Women come in different sizes and shapes but funny how we all want to look the same…”

So I abandoned the gym reflections for a reflections on the debates revolving around a plastic doll that is about what – nearly sixty years old – and what that doll represented to women globally.

But first of all, let us look at the female body. Females are endowed with wider hips and more overall fat distribution for 1) survival and 2) child-bearing. Wider hips allow for more stability and the easier bearing of a nearly 3 kg baby in the uterus. Fleshier hips allow for more nutrition storage just in case times are hard. The female body is one of uniqueness whereby the body will automatically protect itself first – even in pregnancy – should food shortage arise. And that means every single amount of energy that is unused is preciously preserved. Women need fat – not because it helps us bear children but because of our hormones. The female hormones are fat soluble and thus lack of fat equals lack of female hormones equals….no kiddies and the failure of our reproductive organs. This is why extreme female bodybuilders and women suffering from aneroxia nervosa suffer from lack of periods – insufficient nutrition and fat.

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Something piqued my thoughts this morning. And since then, my brain has been working hard.

I was in church – today it so happened that I stayed for the ministry (it’s like a lecture of some sort) and thus had the opportunity to listen to some announcements and publicity stuff for certain events (yes, even churches need publicity to get people to go for events and what-not). One of these announcements revolved around missionary work in some remote corner. Granted the speaker could use more help to spicy up his ‘introductory speech’ and the projector he used needs fixing…but I was thinking about one thing he mentioned: “we are there to preach God’s word to these people but first of all, we need to learn their language and culture and etc…”

This got me thinking.

Does missionary work comprimise the cultures of nomadic/ancient tribes and Aboriginal communities?

Sociologists and anthropologists argue that while culture is constantly evolving and changing, the groundwork of the unique cultures worldwide are disappearing fast due to the impact of globalisation and the media in many small little corners of the globe. Fijians and African cultures/tribes who – in the past – found huge women attractive (beauty was in the fat) are now constantly bombarded with messages that THIN is in. They have already begun to lose bits and pieces of their unique culture. Anthropologists are worried that towards the end of this century, the world will no longer be seeing a variety of different cultures but just one homogenous bunch of mixed up subcultures.

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