by Julie Carter
You have heard it all many times before. Beauty is only skin
deep. Take care of the inner self and the outer self will take care of itself.
Women tend to look at themselves in parts as opposed to the
whole package created by God. We see our hair as not long enough, not thick
enough, not curly enough, or not straight enough.
We see our eyes as not big enough, not wide-set enough and
never the right color. Our lashes are never long enough and as we age, they
appear even shorter as gravity forces the eyebrow area to a lower elevation.
And then there are the rest of our parts. Never the skin we
would like to have, never the height, weight or shape that pleases ourselves.
The magic drawer
At my house, beauty is in the mysterious “magic drawer” -- a
name my makeup magician sister-in-law gave to her stored concoctions of beauty.
She would disappear to her boudoir, open this big dresser-drawer full of magic
makeup and momentarily re-appear
looking like something off the cover of Vogue.
I thought having a drawer like that was a very good idea,
but over time I discovered my magic drawer contained more of a Parks and Wildlife look than the Vogue variety. The contents of such a
drawer are very proportional to the lifestyle it enhances.
The cover girl look has always eluded me and in fact, I’ve
noticed a transition in the drawer inventory that tells a story about then and
now.
Hot pink anything is
gone
Hot pink blush has been replaced by under-eye concealers.
Hot pink pearlized lipstick is now medicated lip balm. The hot pink nail polish
is gone and clear Hard as Nails is in its place. The bright blue eye shadow to
make your eyes sparkle is now a soft beige version to conceal the puffiness.
Over-the-counter pills for weight control and ever-lasting
energy are long gone and in their place is an industrial sized bottle of
Tylenol PM. Birth control pills are replaced by hormonal therapy pills and the
tropical coconut-pineapple-banana suntan oil has morphed into a jar of
mega-moisturizer with a 10,000 SPF factor.
Sunglasses with crazy-colored frames to match every outfit
have been replaced by a plethora of reading glasses conveniently placed
everywhere.
Looking cute and coiffed at the ranch while you work like a
hired hand is a futile effort at best. Usually no one is more surprised how
good you clean up than the boss himself.
New hair-do?
I was having lunch with one of those ranch-wife hired hands
and her husband joined us at the restaurant. His first inquiry to his wife was,
“Did you just get your hair done?”
“No,” she explained. “You just haven’t seen me with it fixed
in so long you forgot what it looked like.”
Of course he doesn’t have much hair so the concept of
keeping it presentable in all weather, wearing all kinds of winter gear and
hats, has never been an issue for him.
The upside to the lifetime transformation of the magic
drawer is about the woman herself.
At this point in life she knows who her real friends are and
having them doesn’t require a certain “look.”
She knows that being appreciated is far more valuable than being a cover
girl.
Dignity and self-assuredness are the absolute best elements
of beauty. You won’t find them in a drawer, magic or otherwise.
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