Hey everyone! Here we are moving into March and I haven’t written in awhile. I am not sure why. Life gets crazy and busy, so many thoughts with too many directions. How have you been? I thought I would ask that before I delve down the road with my thoughts. Sometimes there are people in my life that they forget to ask me how I am or what my thoughts are before they delve into their world. Always important to talk ask about each other, atleast I think so.
Anyways…. just watching Grace and Frankie on Netflix. No rights to this show or it’s contents. But an episode came on about the real person. Grace saying she wasn’t loveable at her age with false eyelashes and just being older. How many of you feel that now? How many of us feel that we are competing with younger folks or just competing in general? There are parts a out each of us that we like and don’t like. There are parts we keep hidden even from ourselves sometimes and certainly from others. We share the best part of our lives on social media, the glimpse of the smiles, of items we acquire, of nature and life. Behind close doors we deal with uncertainty, depression or anxiety, for some an abusive home life, for some just wishing life wouldn’t be so hard.
On the show, Grace is telling her gentleman suitor that she has been keeping up an illusion and strips off the false eyelashes and hair extensions, wipes away the make up, grabs her cane that she needs for a bad knee and said this was the real her and he had better run. He ran towards her instead! Isn’t that what we all want in life, for someone to run to us no matter the enhancements or lack there of, just to be accepted as we are. I think this can be any age and gender. I guess I identify with this more as I am now in my 50’s. On the show she is in her early 70’s. Dating in my late 40’s was a challenge, imagine in your 70’s? Yes, I realize this is a show but this does happen in real life as well. Dating and relationships as older adults. And even if we take dating out of the picture for a moment, how about do we accept ourselves? When we wipe off the make up or shave the beard for you guys, lose the spanx and fancy bras and men loosen that belt, when we really look in the mirror who do we really see?
Once I remove the make up, my rosacea is flamimg red like an alcoholic. I still get occasional acne, my curly hair looks like Medusa on crack and my body is squishy and scarred. When I look past the outside, I look a little deeper and see a woman who loves with her whole heart, who has been brave at times, scared at other times, who overcame a bad marriage and raised 2 kids that turned out pretty well. I see the young teenage girl, girl memories and I see a woman with a slideshow of memories, laughter, hurt and sorrow, of family and love, I see my heart. What do you see when you are in the quiet times? And then maybe what do we see when we look at others? Do we see the whole person or just the parts we like? Do we look beyond the outward shell and look deeper?
Sometimes in our superficial world of social media and busyness of life, we don’t really see those around us. Now I take a selfie now and again, I post the happy and silly moments, but I have many more layers to me. I bet you do too. So does the overweight person in the grocery store or the really thin person at taco bell. Or the older woman at the make up counter looking for the best moisturizer to the other older woman who is working in her flower garden without sunscreen. Or the older man with a younger partner or the older man sitting by himself at the coffee shop. Each one showing one side that we see, but there is so much more.
This silly show made me think about layers and what we project and who we are. I am all for fixing myself up, make up and pretty earrings. No spanx as that crap is uncomfortable, I know what I like to wear and working on my outer shell. But beyond that, there is beauty in the imperfections, strength in the crows feet and dimply skin, wisdom behind the smile and a heart of a woman. In some others, I see outward beauty, I see youth and remember those days well, in others I see strength and courage, in some I see selfishness and a me me me society. But I also see humanity, goodness and grace, lessons on who I want to be and sometimes traits I don’t want to follow.How about you? In a world where we all want to look younger, be younger, skinny or heavy, straight hair or curly….what do you see in yourself and in others? Do we see past the false eyelashes and perfect presentation or do we see someone’s countenance? In today’s world more than ever, maybe we should strive to be real, the real us. All the flaws, imperfections and the wonderfully made real us and love every part and every moment we are blessed to have.
Just my thoughts from binge watching TV. Now I have to go cover up the redness on my skin, throw on some scrubs and tame my curly hair and embrace this day! I may wear make up but it never covers the real me! Be real my friends, love yourself and give grace to those who grate on our nerves. Smile today and know that it will be a good day!!
