Why I Remain an Altrusan

I mentioned something to my husband the other night that still has him shaking his head.

"I know now why God made me fat," I said. "It's because He wanted me to see that other people can love me exactly for who I am."

And before you start in on me, let me just say up front that I know my family and my husband and my husband's family all love me just the way I am. But this is my other family I'm talking about: my Altrusa family.

A couple of weeks ago I experienced one of the best nights of my life, literally filled with all the people I love. There were tears and countless hugs and champagne. There were beautiful dresses and photographs taken and wonderful things said about wonderful people. There were gifts and flowers and parties. And there was a spotlight, figuratively, on me. Little ole me from Texarkana. Little ole me who got bullied on the bus by this boy named Shannon until this other boy, whose name I don't remember, told him to stop, so Shannon started bullying both of us. Shannon made fun of me because I was quiet on the bus. Yes, you read that right. And because I was overweight, which probably was partly WHY I was quiet on the bus.

Thank God for athletics, because starting in the sixth grade through my junior year in college, volleyball, basketball, track, and softball had me on a year-round workout regimen that kept my weight fairly managed. But when I quit sports my senior year, I started ... uh ... growing. And since then I've been skinny and I've been not-so-skinny (I can seriously recommend Weight Watchers; it works when you work it.) and I've been on this yo-yo self-image kick that can sometimes feel like carrying a load of bricks. I can, in a flat second, convince myself that all my failures are due to weight.

But it occurred to me--no, it had already occurred to me, but I think it finally sunk in--on the night of April 20, 2013, that my weight has no bearing on who I am. Why? Because there are people who love me with a true, sisterlike love. There are people who genuinely LIKE me because of the things I have said and done. They believed in me and elected me as their leader, and then they stood and clapped. And I geniunely love them, like them, and believe in them ... right back.

I became an Altrusan "to do community service." These people are the reason I remain an Altrusan today. Over the past 15 years I have met some fascinating women (of all shapes and sizes). I have doubled over with laughter with them, and I have been moved to tears by how proud I am of them. I have followed their advice and I have allowed them to shape me into a leader. I am changed because of knowing them, and when I stopped that night to comment to my husband, I realized that my God used them to get to me. I will always be an Altrusan, and I would encourage everyone to try it. Who knows what person you might become?

Beth Blair
2013-2015 Governor