“I’ll give you something to smile about.”

“Nice legs.”

“Come here and ride this…”

These are all things that I have heard while walking down the street, from around the age of eleven till now. I remember telling someone about these comments making me uncomfortable and they said, “Welcome to womanhood.”

I wish I would have known what becoming a woman meant, because I would have done anything and everything to stop it from happening. There was no lack of time between from when I started wearing my first training bra, to the time I was first catcalled on the street or heckled by a boy in class.

I remember feeling sick to my stomach the first time it happened, and now I don’t blink twice when I’m at work and a man gestures to the bathroom and tells me to “join him.”

The sad thing is we’re used to it because women have been sexualized from the beginning of time. Before we start our first period, before our chest grows and our hips widen — we are sexualized.

We are ridiculed for what we wear from the moment we begin elementary school. Us women, who are just small girls at that point, are taught that our bodies are the problem.

We are told that if too much of our skin is showing, it’s inappropriate or a distraction. We are told that shoulders must be covered up, no matter how warm it is and skirts must go past your fingertips, no matter the length of your arms.

This shows girls that their bodies are not their own, that they are objects for others to stare at. This starts as children and continues to adulthood. We aren’t able to express ourselves through our clothing or sexually without being called sluts.

We’re called derogatory terms or sexualized for wearing short skirts or for being a little ‘promiscuous.’ We should be able to express ourselves, be sexual and embrace our womanhood without being judged by society, but especially by men.

So welcome to womanhood. Strap in and good luck.

Destiny Torres is an opinion writer. Contact her at [email protected].