I have been reading many articles about women and aging. Some loathe it, while others embrace it. These articles, however, are all based on how men view women, and not directly based on how women view themselves. Most women spend their lives combating a number of hormone and age related issues, some are genetic, others are not. These 'issues' range from pimples to wrinkles and back again...none of which have any easy solution or 'fix', and all of which we all experience at some point in our lives. Let's face facts, the woman who has never had one pimple in her life time is as rare as a snow white lion. They exist, but are very far and few between.
What I would like to see, is an article written by a woman, about her own aging process, without feeling the over whelming urge to put even one sentence in there regarding how she is viewed by men, on any level. I'll bet you anything, that will be the most difficult article for a woman to write. Or, would it?
Thanks to the Internet (which turns 20 years old this week by the way), the wonderful world of womanhood has been opened up for the globe to see in all its flaming glory, as well as all of its wretched failure. Far too often, we read articles on a small group of people around the world who we consider to be 'celebrities'. These people go into the various forms of media outlets and proclaim certain things, and the rest of the world follows them like sheep being herded by some self-appreciating shepherd.
We see some movie actress, who appears to have flawless skin, tell people to use certain brands of cosmetic products, because they say things along the lines of "It works for me". Yay them?
The plastic, fake world of cosmetics has almost taken over every woman's life to some degree or another. Most women can't tolerate to live without their cosmetics. They can't be seen in public without at least a good slathering of facial powder and some eye make up. And the gods above and below help them if anyone should ever show up at their homes and they're not fully prepared for visitors! Oh the embarrassment of it all!! Why? Why do women do this to themselves? Why are women so concerned about the aging process, and all the things that go along with it? Are women so low on self-esteem that they are literally afraid that they will no longer be attractive to men? Furthermore, why don't women spend more time worrying about being attractive to themselves? Is that a 'bad thing'?
There was also an article recently about an 83 year old grandmother who had her breasts enhanced. WHY is that such a big ordeal to people?! She's obviously adult enough to make her own choices about her body, and if she wants to have her breasts enhanced, who on earth should think that this is a bad thing? She's not blind. She knows the female body tends to head south as it ages. So what's the big deal? She didn't ask permission from someone? Like she actually has to? She did that for herself. Not her family, or her friends or anyone else. She did that for herself, and by golly good for her!!
It has been my long-standing opinion that if a woman does something for herself, regarding aging and beauty, that it is more attractive than if she does something just because it's the 'in' thing to do, or just because some male friends of hers think she'd look better and more attractive to them. Who the hell cares if she's more attractive to those people? If those people are actually rude enough to even mention that to her, they're not really friends at all.
My daughter, who is turning 23 soon, is not married, has lived a totally good life thus far, with few medical issues that have come her way and is just now beginning to realize things about herself that she was slow to accept early on. To me, this makes her truly beautiful. She's nothing shy of a blonde bomb shell. Born with naturally platinum blonde hair, blue eyes and cheek bones that are the envy of many of her friends...but the unwanted attention she gets is enough to make her want to curl up in a corner somewhere and hide half the time.
I think what women need to start realizing about themselves, at any age, is that they are beautiful in their own right, and so long as they are happy with themselves, then there's nothing for them to change. Aging has its benefits as well in this area. Younger women who get dressed in the morning tend to go through their clothing and take a mental note as to how their clothing choices will effect people around them. In other words, they're not dressing for themselves, but rather for everyone else that might see them that day. When a woman grows older, she just flat out stops caring what everyone else around her thinks, and dresses for herself.
Personally, I have never dressed for anyone other than myself. There are certain occasions in one's life that more or less require a person to dress in a certain manner. Wearing your favorite pair of ripped-in-the-knee denim jeans and plaid shirt is not the best choice at a wedding, for example. And it's probably not the best idea to show up in your favorite set of fleece pajamas for a business meeting. However, when we go to these functions and meetings, why not dress in things that are comfortable? Even if we hate dressing up, at least we'll have the feeling of comfort.
The Olsen twins of television and fashion fame, have been seen wearing semi-formal clothing, but their fashion sense and taste has been dubbed "granny fashion" by the media. This is because these are two fairly young women, who don't go out of their way to wear clothing that is so tight and revealing that a piece of plastic wrap would have more bodily coverage than the clothing some women that age choose to wear. They don't wander around in heels that are high enough to make breathing only possible by means of a portable oxygen tank, nor do they wear enough colorful make up to keep them always ready for a good Mardi Gras type face painting festival. They look young, attractive and very much at ease with their own sense of fashion and style. To me, this tells me that they are very strong individual women and should be paid more attention to by the media in a positive manner.
With age comes many things. Experiences life throws you. Curve balls that life throws you. physical changes that happen naturally. Knowledge that you gain from your life's studies, along with wisdom regarding life itself. So many things take place when you age....so too should be the way people, especially women, view themselves.
People need to stop relying so heavily on the physical appearance, and start relying more on their inner selves. After all, once you reach a certain age, the only person that's going to matter when you look in the mirror, is you. Now then, go find a mirror and start learning to enjoy your own sense of style and fashion. I'm pretty sure that you will eventually end up liking what you see, and will also begin to develop your own 'signature style'. Besides, it can be fun too. And, if you want a really good laugh, bring along some funky sunglasses. If no one else around you likes them, at least you will be able to have a good laugh...and laughter, when you age, is truly good medicine for the heart!
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