"A pretty face grows old. A nice body will change. But a good heart will always remain the same." - friendwishes.com
MY LITTLE GIRLY-GIRL
I have seen my little girl blossom into a stage of self-awareness, playfully peering at herself with admiration when I slip on the dress she has chosen to wear for the day... oh, and shoes! did I mention she must complete her ensemble with her pick of sparkly shoes? And then I top it off with some glamorous hair-do of piggy tails and a swipe of chap-stick, and she glows with a coy smile as she twirls in her happiness. All I do is shake my head with awe that I have a little girl on my hands...and she can't help but be so girly! So girly that she could not even fight against the gravitating pull to all things "Pinka!" she'll exclaim. (Pink..and purples...and flowers, and sparkles, and baby dolls) From the way she talks oh-so-sweetly, (duly noted especially to her da da who has expressed that he is in for it when she's bound to break his heart with the first boy she blushes over). She has a strong spirit to nurture, her toddler arms stretching only as far as the length around my neck to offer a hug, accompanied with a gentle pat of reassurance and a soul-reaching gaze into one's eyes. She melts over baby dolls, kittens, puppies...all things baby and cute! I love my little girl and I love watching her from afar as her personality is so feminine and sweet in nature.
As her mother, I want and hope that I can teach her the importance of a balanced sense of self-esteem and having the confidence to be herself now as a girl and for when she will become her own woman, something that comes from within and that the mere beauty of who she is on the outside will be in it's place as only the cover to discovering her beautiful soul on the inside.
BEAUTY AS PERCEIVED BY SOCIETY
When I see my daughter look at herself with admiration in the mirror or even imitating me as I'm getting dressed and putting on my makeup, it got me thinking how natural it is for both men and women, us humans, to be attracted to the physical beauties of our world. I think it's all a part of chemistry and plays a part in compatibility, as having a physical attractiveness in a relationship is an aspect of two blushing over each other with concentrated adoration, mesmerized all while star-gazing into one another's twinkling eyes. Okay, snap your dreamy head out of the clouds I’ve put you in!
But I personally have a natural eye for detail and an enthusiasm, and maybe even a love, for fashion, design, and stylishly beautiful things--quality, hand-crafted pieces, and I’m not ashamed to be open about it because I know within myself that such an appreciation for the mere surface of beauties are in it's proper place.. besides, I’m one to dig deeper for the hidden goods of what makes a person truly beautiful in my eyes.
In the fashion and beauty industry, it can be easy to allow their ads and showcasing of products to determine what beauty means and what it should look like to us. As we flip through magazines or see visually-stimulating images through the entertainment we watch, we are almost programmed to see only what they want us to see and be appealed to. Our perspectives become shaped by what we are bombarded with on an almost daily basis without realizing it. Young girls, as I did so myself, will spend a good chunk of their youth flipping through these magazines, taking away bits and pieces that will influence their personal style and tastes as they evolve into a young woman.
Thankfully today, society has voiced the need for change where such industries are now dramatically embracing beautiful in all of its forms; incorporating different shapes, sizes, colors, cultures, to the extent that the idea of beauty is not just skin deep or based on the mere surface of a person.
BEAUTY FOR SELF-CARE
I do believe in a balanced care for beauty, and in speaking from a woman's standpoint, that a part of taking care of yourself and feeling your best self, includes caring about your appearance. How you look when you see yourself lends to your self-esteem in how you then feel about yourself. I wish everyone to feel good in their own skin and to embrace themselves as they physically are, "workin' with what your mama gave you", as the saying goes.
Slip your piggly-wigglies into those stylish 4-inch heels, and you're bound to own it like a boss to walk your walk, more upright with each stiletto-clinking step. Okay, more like those killer kitten heels for us mamas carrying toddlers on our hip and infant in a chest carrier... But slip into those foam crocs and I bet you're going to be going nowhere to be seen and heard, and bound to feel as sloppy as the baggy sweater you just paired them with. When we put some effort into dressing in a way that puts a smile on our face, we glow differently with a pep in our step, and even if you are strutting in your fav pair of clogs and frumpy sweater.. hey girl, who’s to stop you when your smile is beaming ear to ear? Not moi. Just feel good about how you look on the outside so you then can focus on what matters on the inwards.
When a person is feeling good about themselves from the inside, it will naturally flood outwards in a glow and confidence that no other accessory could replace. When you are happy with what you see looking back at you from the mirror, you can eliminate energy-wasting self-consciousness, to then focus on imparting your beauti-full soul onto others. I think that when you've got your face and hair did out of the way, it then leaves more energy to walk away from the mirror and to then place importance on tending to your inner beauty, more room to cultivate the priority of actually being beautiful, rather than just looking beautiful.
Anything that makes us physically attractive is bound to diminish and age over time, but the beauty we encompass within is what will still remain when we make it what made us beautiful - all along.
BE A SOULFULLY CRAFTED PERSON
As much as my eye is drawn to visually appealing details, I highly, and above most other things in life, value the inner beauty of a person and the story of how such a beautiful art-piece of a person was crafted. I feel like when you are a person of depth in understanding, experience, and thus wisdom gained to then impart to benefit others, you then put the "full" in beautiful. You become a wholesome person that can be both of an intellectual mind first and accompanied by a "pretty face", filled with humanly qualities that truly connects with others on deeper levels, than what mere eye contact on a basis of physical attraction could ever achieve alone.
No amount of makeup can ever truly capture the beauty of a truly beautiful soul. By adjusting our view to embrace our own beauti-full and that of others, we can rewrite the definition of beauty that it is no longer confined to the shallow perception that it is only skin-deep. We thus create an endless array of what beautiful is defined by: each person encapsulated in the beauty of their soul shining through--the beauty of who they are radiantly glowing from the inside out.
As a woman, wife, and mother - I write from such a point of view, but I feel that this could also be applied to how we see and value our men for who they are on the inside. Any person should endeavor to be beautiful on the inside, striving to be filled with a depth of characteristics that draw others to them for their sincerity, kindness, generosity, compassion, understanding, humility, integrity, courage..for such qualities are what will really shine through and make one truly a beautiful individual. Embrace your beauti-full, you beautiful one.
"Make your heart the most beautiful thing about you." - Indie and Harper
With LOVE. Always,
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