Wednesday, August 19, 2015

Read Between The Fine Lines

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Recently, I've noticed something. I'm not allowed to get older than I am now. And if I DO, I certainly shouldn't look it. Let me explain. I was in the local drugstore with my daughter, we had to get shampoo, or something trivial like that, and we passed the hair care area. There it was, 43 different types of haircolor, all meant to cover grey Now, I have nothing against haircolor, I am all for coloring my hair in shades nature never intended, but when I let it go from its current purple/blue/natural mashup back to its intended dark auburn, I rock my bright white stripes with pride. They are me. I've lived a lot of life in my 41 years, and I've earned every strand. Then I considered that maybe, in true form for myself, I was overthinking it, because that IS what I do.

Stroll over to the skincare aisle. Rack upon row of moisturizers, peels, washes, scrubs, and stuff I don't know what it is. All For women, all to prevent aging, or acne, or some flaw. Brightening, bronzing, shine control, plumping, dark circle stuff, you get the idea. Our skin can never be good enough, fresh enough, YOUNG enough.

Stroll over to the men's aisle. What the what? There is no men's aisle. The men have a little section, smaller than the area for one BRAND of the women's goop, and it has body wash in different scents, shampoo, deodorant, and that is everything they need. What's up with that?

Why is it that men are allowed to age gracefully, in fact, encouraged to do so, while we women are not? Some of the most beautiful women I have ever seen accept their age, don't go crazy tryng to fight it, and live their lives and stand gracefully unashamed of their age. The most beautiful hair I have ever seen belongs to a woman I know right now, from a Circle I belong to. It is this luscious grey white, curly, thick, and I just want to bury my hands and face in it and have my troubles soothed away.

Because that's the thing, isn't it? Men, as they age, are revered for their wisdom. Women, however, seem to feel the need to hide away, or society hides them away. But these are our mothers, our grandmothers, the keepers of our wisdom. And in my not so humble opinion, it's time they stood up, and spoke up. I, for one, will not hide or be silenced. And I won't let my daughter see me act afraid of aging.

The only way, in my eyes, to reverse this trend, is for me to start in my house. To teach my children that those older men AND WOMEN have things of great value to teach them. That beauty is on the inside, within your heart, within your mind. I have to try. Wish me luck.
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2 comments:

  1. Mary KingAugust 25, 2015 at 7:33 PM

    I'm glad to hear you are working to make this a reality in your household. Our patriarchal society makes billions off of making women feel inept by putting an impossible ideal on a pedestal. They make far more money when women hate themselves and buy product after product attempting to reach that impossible beauty standard. On the other hand, I've learned to use cosmetics as an extension of my will. Beauty is Terror.

    Mary King
    Orbofthenight.com

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  2. UnknownAugust 26, 2015 at 5:15 AM

    Thanks for the support, Mary. You're right-beauty is Terror. But we women have to come together and stop being so judgmental of one another as well, I think. I see my little worrying far more about what other girls think of her than what the boys do at this point, and I see much the same in women of my age. Most of what I see is women competing with one another. Is the patriarchy in there? Oh, yeah, sure. But women can be downright vicious to one another, and that doesn't help the situation at all. That one, too, I have to teach at home, and I think it is going to be a harder lesson.

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