In the Bodi tribe, in southern Ethiopia, having a belly would be a source of pride. There, a big belly is not hidden under a shirt or fought with exercise: it is deliberately cultivated. Men take part in a ceremony called “kael”, where for weeks they drink only fresh milk and cow blood to gain weight as quickly as possible.
At the end of the ritual, they stand before the entire community, and the one with the biggest belly earns something that is hard to come by in other cultures: immediate respect. There, a prominent belly is synonymous with wealth, discipline, and masculinity, not neglect. Perhaps the next time you look in the mirror, you will remember that somewhere in the world, what you hide is something someone else celebrates.
