--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: I swallowed hard. Erik thought my body…" description: "\"“I swallowed hard. Erik thought my body was beautiful, Karin that it was enviable. At random times, people had noted that my hands were beautiful, or m..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/eeb/justina-chen-39218_art_i-swallowed-hard-erik-thought-my-body-wa_1201549.png" --- # I swallowed hard. Erik thought my body was beautiful… ![“I swallowed hard. Erik thought my body was beautiful, Karin that it was enviable. At random times, people had noted that my hands were beautiful, or my hair. The Twisted Sisters had called my art beautiful. Mom had the best intentions and always told me before and after my laser surgeries that I…” quote by Justina Chen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/eeb/justina-chen-39218_art_i-swallowed-hard-erik-thought-my-body-wa_1201549.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/eeb/justina-chen-39218_art_i-swallowed-hard-erik-thought-my-body-wa_1201549.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/eeb/justina-chen-39218_art_i-swallowed-hard-erik-thought-my-body-wa_1201549.png) > ““I swallowed hard. Erik thought my body was beautiful, Karin that it was enviable. At random times, people had noted that my hands were beautiful, or my hair. The Twisted Sisters had called my art beautiful. Mom had the best intentions and always told me before and after my laser surgeries that I would be beautiful. But no one had ever said that I was beautiful, all my parts taken together, not just the bits and pieces.”” [Justina Chen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/justina-chen/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. The speaker feels that despite external praise for parts, she never heard affirmation of her whole self, revealing a deep need for holistic acceptance. **In simple terms:** She craves being seen as beautiful overall. Key Takeaway Seek and give whole‑person validation. Themes self‑esteem identity acceptance Mood vulnerable reflective Type personal emotive When to use this quote - therapy sessions - support groups - personal journaling - artistic expression Key Concepts psychology body image Questions to Reflect On - How does fragmented praise affect self‑image? - What steps foster holistic self‑acceptance? A Different Perspective Societal focus on fragments can hinder wholeness. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Art](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/art/) [Beautiful Said](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/beautiful-said-433390/) [Beauty](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/beauty/) [Best intentions](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/best-intentions/) [Bits and pieces](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/bits-and-pieces/) [Body Beautiful](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/body-beautiful-250644/) [Hands Beautiful](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/hands-beautiful-1682079/) [Said Beautiful](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/said-beautiful/) [Surgeries Beautiful](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/surgeries-beautiful-3605458/) ## Related quotes > [“This is beautiful," I said, ignoring the shop window to trace the gleaming stone walls fronting another boutique. "You know what's funny?" Jacob asked.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/justina-chen-headley/this-is-beautiful-i-said-ignoring-the-shop-window-to-trace-the/) [Justina Chen Headley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/justina-chen-headley/) > [“You’re not beautiful,” he said. “Your profile said beautiful. You kind of overreached on that one.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/diane-dunning/you-re-not-beautiful-he-said-your-profile-said-beautiful-you-kind-of/) [Diane Dunning](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/diane-dunning/) > [“I watch his hands, his beautiful, capable fingers. Scarred, as mine were before the Capitol erased all marks from my skin, but strong and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/suzanne-collins/i-watch-his-hands-his-beautiful-capable-fingers-scarred-as-mine-were/) [Suzanne Collins](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/suzanne-collins/) > [Does he have ugly hands? Sometimes beautiful people have ugly hands." "No he has kind of amazing hands.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-green/does-he-have-ugly-hands-sometimes-beautiful-people-have-ugly-hands-no/) [John Green](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-green/) > [“Christ’s nail-pierced hands are beautiful beyond measure, for they tell us of His love and His willingness to save us regardless of the cost.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/billy-graham/christ-s-nail-pierced-hands-are-beautiful-beyond-measure-for-they/) [Billy Graham](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/billy-graham/) > [Everyone says, 'oh, she has such perfect skin and her hands are so beautiful', as if I'm this kind of untouchable creature. But I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charlize-theron/everyone-says-oh-she-has-such-perfect-skin-and-her-hands-are-so/) [Charlize Theron](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charlize-theron/) > [My wife's hands are very beautiful. I'm going to have a bust made of them.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/samuel-goldwyn/my-wife-s-hands-are-very-beautiful-i-m-going-to-have-a-bust-made-of/) [Samuel Goldwyn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/samuel-goldwyn/) > [“Does he have ugly hands? Sometimes beautiful people have ugly hands.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/does-he-have-ugly-hands-sometimes-beautiful-people-have-ugly-hands/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [The Deaf Hands show that how beautiful hands like a Fireworks.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/vernado/the-deaf-hands-show-that-how-beautiful-hands-like-a-fireworks/) [Vernado](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/vernado/) > [Boys hands are so beautiful I love boys hands](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ream/boys-hands-are-so-beautiful-i-love-boys-hands/) [Ream](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ream/) > [“That day we held our hands and each other was indeed a beautiful dream. But, we all wake up in the end.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/luke-blaise-pereira/that-day-we-held-our-hands-and-each-other-was-indeed-a-beautiful/) [Luke Blaise Pereira](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/luke-blaise-pereira/) > [“I’m not sure I even know what love is, but I’ve got my hands full of something beautiful.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/angela-morrison/i-m-not-sure-i-even-know-what-love-is-but-i-ve-got-my-hands-full-of/) [Angela Morrison](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/angela-morrison/) > [Her hands held me gently from the day I took my first breath. Her hands helped to guide me as I took my first…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bilal/her-hands-held-me-gently-from-the-day-i-took-my-first-breath-her/) [Bilal](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bilal/) > [“Anna took a knife and fork in her beautiful, white, ring-adorned hands and began to demonstrate. She obviously could see that her explanation could…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/leo-tolstoy/anna-took-a-knife-and-fork-in-her-beautiful-white-ring-adorned-hands/) [Leo Tolstoy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/leo-tolstoy/) > [A well trained body is a beautiful instrument on which to play the melody of the present moment.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rodney-yee/a-well-trained-body-is-a-beautiful-instrument-on-which-to-play-the/) [Rodney Yee](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rodney-yee/) ## More by Justina Chen > [“these two people who had everything money could buy but the one thing that could be given freely: love.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/justina-chen/these-two-people-who-had-everything-money-could-buy-but-the-one-thing/) [Justina Chen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/justina-chen/) > [You can see beauty in everything, except for yourself.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/justina-chen/you-can-see-beauty-in-everything-except-for-yourself/) [Justina Chen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/justina-chen/) > [“We can choice to cower at the river's edge, watching as life sails past us, always the bystander, never the participant. We can shade…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/justina-chen/we-can-choice-to-cower-at-the-river-s-edge-watching-as-life-sails/) [Justina Chen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/justina-chen/) > [Forgiving others is easier when I remember that I'm human and stupid, too.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/justina-chen/forgiving-others-is-easier-when-i-remember-that-i-m-human-and-stupid/) [Justina Chen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/justina-chen/) > [“Mom was crying while she cooked, salting domesticity with anguish, the recipe of her life.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/justina-chen/mom-was-crying-while-she-cooked-salting-domesticity-with-anguish-the/) [Justina Chen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/justina-chen/) > [“how many times had I begged Mom to divorce him already?”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/justina-chen/how-many-times-had-i-begged-mom-to-divorce-him-already/) [Justina Chen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/justina-chen/) > [“Because freedom may be a forbidden fruit in tyrannies, but once tasted, it is unforgettable.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/justina-chen/because-freedom-may-be-a-forbidden-fruit-in-tyrannies-but-once-tasted/) [Justina Chen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/justina-chen/) > [“No experience is wasted.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/justina-chen/no-experience-is-wasted/) [Justina Chen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/justina-chen/) > [“that even within its ugliness, there lay a surprising beauty, breathtaking because it was so unexpected.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/justina-chen/that-even-within-its-ugliness-there-lay-a-surprising-beauty/) [Justina Chen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/justina-chen/) > [“When you think about it, life is a risk. Every day is a risk. Getting in a car is a risk. Loving is a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/justina-chen/when-you-think-about-it-life-is-a-risk-every-day-is-a-risk-getting-in/) [Justina Chen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/justina-chen/) [Explore all 11 Justina Chen quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/justina-chen/) ## More Art quotes > [True works of art contain their own theory and give us the measurement according to which we should judge them.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/johann-wolfgang-von-goethe/true-works-of-art-contain-their-own-theory-and-give-us-the/) [Johann Wolfgang von Goethe](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/johann-wolfgang-von-goethe/) > [Before Noah, men having only water to drink, could not find the truth. Accordingly...they became abominably wicked, and they were justly exterminated by the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/benjamin-franklin/before-noah-men-having-only-water-to-drink-could-not-find-the-truth/) [Benjamin Franklin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/benjamin-franklin/) > [“Hear the sum of the whole matter in the compass of one brief word — every art possessed by man comes from Prometheus.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/aeschylus/hear-the-sum-of-the-whole-matter-in-the-compass-of-one-brief-word/) [Aeschylus](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/aeschylus/) > [I think most artists feel like they're outside society - no matter how many accolades they receive, or how much money is in your…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/aaron-rose/i-think-most-artists-feel-like-they-re-outside-society-no-matter-how/) [Aaron Rose](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/aaron-rose/) > [The capacity to be puzzled is the premise of all creation, be it in art or in science.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/erich-fromm/the-capacity-to-be-puzzled-is-the-premise-of-all-creation-be-it-in/) [Erich Fromm](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/erich-fromm/) > [That's the great secret of creativity. You treat ideas like cats: you make them follow you.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ray-bradbury/that-s-the-great-secret-of-creativity-you-treat-ideas-like-cats-you/) [Ray Bradbury](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ray-bradbury/) > [“So, really," continued Jacob as if this were perfectly normal to expound on art in these circumstances, "when you think about it, the artists…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/justina-chen-headley/so-really-continued-jacob-as-if-this-were-perfectly-normal-to-expound/) [Justina Chen Headley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/justina-chen-headley/) > [“There are two options in art; either to adopt philosophical life by dissecting art, or to write your own philosophical life and claim it…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/taf-teh/there-are-two-options-in-art-either-to-adopt-philosophical-life-by/) [Taf Teh](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/taf-teh/) > [The house has to serve comfort. The work of art is revolutionary; the house is conservative.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/adolf-loos/the-house-has-to-serve-comfort-the-work-of-art-is-revolutionary-the/) [Adolf Loos](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/adolf-loos/) > [During human progress, every science is evolved out of its corresponding art.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/herbert-spencer/during-human-progress-every-science-is-evolved-out-of-its/) [Herbert Spencer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/herbert-spencer/) > [In literature and art memory is a synonym for invention. It is the life-blood of imagination, which faints and dies when the veins are…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-aris-willmott/in-literature-and-art-memory-is-a-synonym-for-invention-it-is-the/) [Robert Aris Willmott](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-aris-willmott/) > [I think a business guy is different from an artist. They walk different paths. Artists create the best outputs when they're having fun. And…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/g-dragon/i-think-a-business-guy-is-different-from-an-artist-they-walk/) [G-Dragon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/g-dragon/) > [“The only thing--I tell you this straight from the heart--that disgusts me in Salzburg is that one can't have any proper social intercourse with…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wolfgang-amadeus-mozart/the-only-thing-i-tell-you-this-straight-from-the-heart-that-disgusts/) [Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/wolfgang-amadeus-mozart/) > [The sublime in art is the attempt to express the infinite without finding in the realm of phenomena any object which proves itself fitting…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/georg-wilhelm-friedrich-hegel/the-sublime-in-art-is-the-attempt-to-express-the-infinite-without/) [Georg Wilhelm Friedrich Hegel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/georg-wilhelm-friedrich-hegel/) > [Art isn't done to decorate apartments, but to wage war against the enemy.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pablo-picasso/art-isn-t-done-to-decorate-apartments-but-to-wage-war-against-the/) [Pablo Picasso](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pablo-picasso/) [Browse all 48,643 Art quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/art/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "“I swallowed hard. 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