A few months ago, someone tried to insult me.

She called me “Miss Piggy“.

I laughed.

Not because it didn’t sting for a split second—it did. I’m human. But within seconds, my friend Amie and I looked at each other and burst out laughing.

“Miss Piggy? I’ll take it! She’s a bad-ass-bitch!”

Honestly… we discussed it at length.

TBH – That’s one of the best compliments I’ve ever received. LOL

The older I get, the more I realize that many of the women we were taught to laugh at were actually decades ahead of their time. Somewhere along the way, confidence became arrogance if it belonged to a woman. Ambition became “too much.” Glamour became vanity. Standards became “high maintenance.”

Maybe we misunderstood Miss Piggy all along. Looking back, I don’t think many of us realized we were watching one of our first feminist icons.

If I’m honest, this wouldn’t have been funny twenty years ago.

It probably wouldn’t have been funny ten years ago either.

There was a time when a comment like that would have sent me spiraling. I would have questioned my worth, picked apart my appearance, started another diet, and wondered if everyone else secretly agreed.

But something has changed.

Over the last few years, I’ve done the hard work of healing my relationship with my body. Not because I’ve reached some magical goal weight or suddenly fit society’s definition of “perfect,” but because I finally realized my life doesn’t begin when my body changes.

My body has carried me through heartbreak, entrepreneurship, reinvention, laughter, loss, and more second chances than I can count. It deserves movement because I respect it. It deserves nourishment because it serves me. And it deserves joy—right now, not twenty pounds from now.

That’s why you’ll find me dancing in a bikini.

Not because I think I have the “perfect” body.

Because I’ve finally stopped believing I need one to deserve a beautiful life.

So when someone called me “Miss Piggy,” they thought they were commenting on my body.

What they didn’t realize is that I no longer measure my worth by someone else’s opinion of it.

She Never Asked for Permission

Miss Piggy never walked into a room wondering whether she belonged there.

She simply assumed she did.

Imagine how different our lives would be if more women stopped waiting for permission to take up space.

How many of us have stayed quiet in meetings?

How many of us have made ourselves smaller so someone else could feel bigger?

How many of us have apologized for having a big personality, a big vision, or big dreams?

Miss Piggy never apologized for being seen.

She Wanted More—and She Never Apologized for It

She wanted beautiful clothes.

She wanted success.

She wanted adventure.

She wanted love.

She wanted applause.

And she said it out loud.

Somewhere along the way, women were taught that wanting more was selfish. We were told to be grateful, to be content, to avoid looking “too ambitious.”

But why?

Why is it admirable when a man dreams bigger, yet questionable when a woman does?

Lately I’ve been saying something often:

I deserve more of me, more time, more joy, more love, and yes… more money.

Not because I deserve more than anyone else.

Because I’ve finally stopped believing I deserve less.

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She Loved Kermit…

Everyone remembers Miss Piggy chasing Kermit.

That’s the joke.

But that’s not what I remember.

I remember a woman who knew exactly what she wanted.

She wanted partnership.

She wanted commitment.

She wanted someone who celebrated her.

Did Kermit always give her that?

No.

But here’s what I love about Miss Piggy.

She never stopped being Miss Piggy while waiting for Kermit to figure himself out.

She didn’t give up her career.

She didn’t stop performing.

She didn’t stop dreaming.

She didn’t shrink herself hoping he’d love her more.

As someone who has spent much of her life giving too much of herself away, that lesson hits differently today than it would have ten years ago.

Wanting love doesn’t make you weak.

Losing yourself trying to earn it does.

Because I am a Woman!

She Took Up Space

Physically.

Emotionally.

Professionally.

Socially.

She wasn’t trying to become easier to digest.

She wasn’t trying to become less.

How many women spend decades trying to become smaller?

Smaller bodies.

Smaller dreams.

Smaller voices.

Smaller expectations.

Smaller personalities.

For years, I believed that if I could just become a little more this… or a little less that… life would somehow become easier.

Now I think differently.

I don’t want to become smaller.

I want to become more aligned.

There’s a difference.

She Loved Glamour Without Apology

Pink.

Sequins.

Pearls.

High heels.

Confidence.

Femininity.

Strength.

Somewhere along the way, society created a false choice.

Be intelligent or beautiful.

Be strong or feminine.

Be successful or kind.

Miss Piggy rejected all of it.

She reminded us that femininity is not weakness.

Never has been.

Never will be.

She Wasn’t Perfect

Let’s be honest.

She was dramatic.

She could be vain.

She had a temper.

She absolutely karate chopped people.

She was messy.

But maybe that’s exactly why she mattered.

We’ve spent decades expecting women to become perfect before we allow them to become powerful.

Men are allowed to be flawed leaders.

Women are expected to be flawless before they’re even heard.

Miss Piggy refused to wait for perfection.

She simply showed up.

Again.

And again.

And again.

The world told women to become smaller.
Miss Piggy never got the memo. Neither did I.

Maybe We’ve Been Laughing at the Wrong Thing

Today, I don’t just talk about prioritizing yourself—I try to live it. Sometimes that looks like making a difficult decision. Sometimes it looks like starting over. And sometimes, it looks like dancing in a bikini because you’ve finally decided your body doesn’t have to earn the right to experience joy.

The woman who called me Miss Piggy thought she was commenting on my appearance.

What I heard was something entirely different.

Bold.

Confident.

Unapologetic.

Visible.

Ambitious.

Larger than life.

Independent.

Resilient.

Thank you.

I’ll take every one of those.

Because today I understand something that took me nearly five decades to learn.

I don’t need to become smaller to make other people comfortable.

I don’t need permission to dream bigger.

I don’t need to apologize for taking up space.

I don’t need to settle for relationships, opportunities, or expectations that ask me to become less of myself.

I can build businesses.

I can start over.

I can reinvent my life.

I can say my dreams out loud.

I can prioritize myself.

And if that makes me Miss Piggy…

I’ll wear the pearls proudly.

Miss Piggy is a beloved fictional character created by Jim Henson and now part of The Muppets franchise. This article is a personal reflection on the cultural impact of the character and the lessons I’ve chosen to take from her.

PS – This blog was written with the help of AI. The experience, idea, edits, & errors are my own. – Bridget.