What do you really think about yourself when you look in the mirror? I personally think like Popeye, "I yam what I yam". No longer do I yearn to be thinner, prettier, or younger. If that thought does briefly cross my mind, it is usually for some one's need other than mine, as in "I wish I could be prettier/thinner/younger for (fill in the name) then maybe they could love me". I can not for the life of me see how that can possibly be healthy.
In my mind's eye, I am like the young Fonzie in the photo above -- I still feel pretty much like I felt between ages 20 and 50. Yet, I'm on the other side of 50. So, how old do we have to be to be allowed to look our age?
I have long been contemptuous of our society for demanding we, i.e., women remain forever young, particularly after I spent a couple of decades in therapy dealing with acceptance. I know others struggle with these issues. We can't all be Jamie Curtis. Please do not hold up Madonna or Demi Moore as examples of the aging woman. These are aging women with money to sculpt themselves right into being unrecognizable. While I admire Madonna professionally, I do not want to look like that.
Two essays caught my eye this week:
Why Can't Middle-Aged Women Have Long Hair? by Dominique Browning
and Aging by Paulina Porizkova
The following, written by Porizkova, soundly resonated with me:
Acceptance was suppose to be a good thing. When may we just f**king exhale?The beauty of age was supposed to be about the wisdom acquired and with it, an acceptance and celebration of who you are. Now all we want for people to see is that we have not yet attained that wisdom. Aging has become something to fight, not something to accept. Aging is a matter of control and control of matter.
1 comments:
I am perfectly happy being my age. The only thing I ask of myself is to stay healthy and fit.
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