A Beautiful Life
"Beauty is but a flower, which wrinkles will devour."
- Thomas Nash
I was recently standing in line at the grocery checkout, feeling glum about my crow's-feet, gray hair, and my gone-with-the-wind figure, which had gone from Scarlett to Mammy in the space of a decade. I picked up a magazine with alluring headlines: "Get Gorgeous!" "Look 10 Ibs Thinner!" "Fabulous at 50!
I opened the magazine and flipped through the pages: " Amazing diet turns ugly fat into harmless water and flows it right out of your system. Works so fast, you shrink down your waistline as much as a full size smaller in just 24 hours." Hmm, no diet pills, no strenuous exercises-I've been dreaming of this for years.
"Grow fresher, younger-looking skin while you sleep. New wrinkle-removing formula instantly takes 10 to 15 years off your face." What if I used it twice? Why, I'd be 29 again-no more laugh lines, crow's-feet, or furrowed forehead.
And then, the dream of mothers everywhere: "Stretch marks disappear instantly." Could I really wear a bikini?
I read on, daydreaming of the new me. Would my friends be so jealous they'd never take me bowling again?
I put the magazine back on the rack. It's really just silliness, isn't it? Spending all this time and money on our looks when we could be focusing on what really matters- creating a life by spending time with loved ones and exploring this world of ours. Obviously we all want to look nice and be healthy as possible, but beyond that, it's pure silliness and at times borderline narcissism. Have you ever noticed truly beautiful older people? They are beautiful because of their shining eyes and ready smile- their love of life, not because they have nipped and tucked to to point where they look like caricatures of their 20-something selves.
TODAY I WILL MAKE MYSELF PRESENTABLE ( OKAY, I MIGHT EVEN SPEND THE EXTRA 15 MINUTES TO LOOK REALLY NICE ), AND I WILL GET OUT THERE AND LIVE MY LIFE.