Sunday 25 April 2021

You're Beautiful

Someone in another blog I read lamented the fact that in her Australian city, there is a big billboard at a busy traffic junction, reading "Making this city beautiful..." and it was an ad for a plastic surgeon!  She was [rightly imho] quite angry at the implication that people [mostly women] are being conned into believing that to be beautiful, you need to let someone cut you about with a knife and alter your features. 

I know that a lot of people have really struggled during lockdown, to maintain their 'image' . I was talking to someone who said they spend ages on their eye make-up, "because it is the only part of me that shows above my mask". Another said recently how thrilled she was to finally get her hair cut "and feel presentable again". Magazines are full of articles about 'losing the lockdown weight gain' - and eating disorders are, sadly, on the rise. 
Now I am not going to deny that feeling your hair looks good, and  your clothes fit well, and generally your appearance is OK is important. It can boost your confidence in a difficult situation, or cheer someone else up to think you 'made an effort' to look good for your meeting with them. But it is sad when people go to extremes. There was a really sad piece about lockdown-lip-procedures which have gone wrong on the BBC website last week. And we were watching a guest on a recent popular TV show and asking each other 'What's happened to her face?' [and hundreds of others went to Twitter to ask the same]
"We spend our days in old sweatshirts and shapeless trackie bottoms, and it doesn't really matter any more" is a common attitude. But you are beautiful - whoever you are - and you are loved. So hold your head high, and ignore those who seek to make their fortunes by selling you a lie. Audrey Hepburn - undeniably a woman of grace and beauty said these words

And the apostle Peter said

I'd rather take the words of Audrey and Peter than a profit-motivated plastic surgeon, wouldn't you? [btw you may find this short piece from BAAPS interesting - unlike the USA and Oz, we don't have those huge billboards!]


  

9 comments:

  1. Absolutely agree.Lovely words from Audrey.

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  2. My first thought was "take your litter home". All of our surroundings seem blighted by the ugliness of littering.
    I don't blame people, especially women, for resorting to surgery to improve a feature that attracts nasty comments. It takes a very strong personality to cope with that.
    It is sad that women feel the need to go further in aiming for perfection but that's been how it is for decades and there's little sign of it changing.

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  3. How sad if we only think of ourselves as perfect if we have work done to our bodies. And thank you Angela, you gave me an idea for a post today.

    I hope you and Bob are continuing to settle in.

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    1. Still surrounded by boxes but getting there gradually

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  4. How sad is that billboard. Our Son has lived in Sydney for the last 18 years and I was quite shocked to see how only the 'beautiful people' were shown on Bondi beach pictures. Every single person is beautiful in their own way and no surgery can make one beautiful inside. I love Audrey's words and the quote from the Scriptures is so comforting.

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  5. That is indeed sad. I do feel bad for those that feel they need to change their features.

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  6. I have just read More than a Woman by Caitlin Moran and found it quite illuminating - she does use some rude words though... Cheers

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    Replies
    1. I may borrow that from the library. Thanks for the suggestion

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