I have been surrounded all my life with women who are meticulously put together every day. My mother has gotten her hair done twice a week for at least 45 years, a trick she learned from my grandmother. Mom still dresses meticulously and always looks like she stepped out of the pages of a magazine. The accessories always match and she changes her purse every day to match her outfit. The thing I admire most about these two women is that as classy as they are, they own equal amounts of warmth and kindness.
As for me, I strive for the warmth and the kindness, but the rest simply exhausts me just thinking about it. I have gotten by (until now) with a greatly reduced sense of vanity. Lately, though, the tide has turned.
A few months ago it came to my attention that my look could best be described as “schlubby.” My mirror told me. Hmmm. If I continue in this direction I will soon be facing looks of great pity in the supermarket. Thus began my physical overhaul.
I started with my wardrobe. Whenever I received an invitation that read “country casual”, “festive attire” or “business formal”. I interpreted it to mean “clothes that fit.” So, I purged my closets and then attended a few CABI parties. Such fun! Aren’t I earning my own money again? Yes, I am, so between my earnings and Brian’s earnings I was covered.
Moving on to jewelry, I reached out to my friends in the worlds of Silpada, Premiere and Stella & Dot. More happiness! I might even need a second jewelry armoire.
Even my shoes were subject to great scrutiny. I now own only 20 or so pairs, but don’t panic, there is always Zappos.
Then to make-up, as in I am starting to do my face every morning. OK, maybe every other morning. Everyone was right. Lipstick does brighten up your face.
Now, to my hair. That is a saga in and of itself. As for the hair not on my head, I have been getting waxed or lasered for years. At least this was covered. Of course, there was the awkward moment a week ago when the 10-year old asked me what a Brazilian wax entailed. We are a VERY modest family, so a visual of any sort was completely out of the question. Somehow I stammered that it was a bikini wax that was high and tight, like a military cut. That seemed to be enough of an answer for him.
The big challenge remains to be the hair on the top of my head. Everyone in the house is taller than me so they feel it is OK to comment on the grey hair on the top of my head. So, this Friday I am off to the salon. It seems that my appointment is going to take at least three hours. Seriously? There was great discussion when I made the appointment as to whether I was going to get a glaze, a panel or something else. These words are meaningless to me so I told them to surprise me. I’ll let you know next week how this adventure turns out.
The last piece of this puzzle is of course, my weight. I continue to work on it at home and in the gym so I presume that one day I will be an ideal size. Too bad I didn’t live a few centuries ago. Renoir would have found me divine!
The key to all this change is simple. I’m only able to move forward because I finally embraced who I am and what I look like. Every curve, every wrinkle and every grey hair has been earned honestly. So, please let me ask you something. Your friends and family already know that you are beautiful where you are right now, so why not believe them?