True beauty is so much more than the physical,outer manifestation of one's appearance,would you agree?Physical appearance is one aspect of any woman's beautiful life.I reckon if you look your best,feel fit,skin glows, & you're happy with how you look & feel in your choices of clothes,then you would'nt be able to help but feel good,& if you feel good it just so happens you'll probably look good & it will spill over into every area of life like a flow on effect.It's human nature to want to look good,who dosn't.As its said in some of the spiritual texts,the body is the temple that houses the soul,so you better look after it.You better honour it for the journey through life .Beauty in life does make us feel good.Beauty in the home,the environment,beauty in a community,a church,a pregnant woman,animals in nature. At the end of the day it really all comes down to how you feel.Elle macpherson said in a recent article "I can look amazing but if I dont feel good it's all wasted".
A Wise woman I know was telling me that she feels the most beautiful when she feels gratitude & has a sense of appreciation for life & all the good in it.This may seem unrelated to beauty,but there are many different opinions on what constitutes beauty & a beautful life,right?so I thought I would add the following piece that, when I first read it years ago,hit me in the guts like a misdirected soccer ball.It's called CHARMED LIVES from the book SIMPLE ABUNDANCE: A DAYBOOK OF COMFORT & JOY by author Sarah Ban Branach:
Charmed lives.Crammed down our throats in the glossy pages of lifestyle magazines.Paid for with a portion of our life energy.It's sick,I tell you,sick.You know who was celebrated for having a charmed life?Macbeth.Now there's a thought worth meditating on.Did Lady Macbeth share this opinion?
Actually,we all have charmed lives.We just don't have a conscious awareness of it,especially after reading about the airbrushed lives of other women.It takes a 1990's version of Everywoman's story to help us see.
This had been one hell of a year for Everywoman.Just about everything that could go wrong,had gone wrong.Or so it seemed.Money was tight because everywoman was paid on commission.It didn't seem to matter how hard she worked,the recession kept the paychecks irregular.Because finances were tight,there was tension in her marriage,which increased after their adjustable rate mortgage went through the roof.Her husband worked two jobs.Many of their conversations (when they were speaking)were about her finding a more reliable form of employment.Everywoman enjoyed her work and was good at it;she just needed a little more time to make it pay off.But time seemed to be running out.
That year,her various aches & pains had turned out to be due to a chronic condition.Her doctor told her to make a lifestyle adjustment:eliminate the stress & fatigue that triggered flare-ups.One of her children had required special attention to get him through a rough emotional patch,which only made the other children resentful.Last spring her dad had died suddenly.Soon afterward,her mother had a series of heart attacks & a debilitating stroke.Unable to care for herself she had to be put into a nursing home.Her widowed mother-in-law fared better.She came to stay "temporarily" during the summer & hadn't left yet.Her teenage daughter frequently complained about having to give up her bedroom for grandma.Seeing her mother-in-law at the dinner table made everywoman feel guilty & resentful that she couldn't do the same for her own mum.Everywoman felt worn to a raveling.Today she begged anyone who might be listening to give her a break.
"You're right.It's been tough," the kindly voice of her guardian angel agreed."Take heart.Every life comes with it's hard times.The Boss says there's a holiday special going on right now.Come up & choose another life,or choose the strength-wisdom-grace package.Strength to meet your challenges,Wisdom to embrace real life,& the grace to be grateful not only for what you have,but for what you've escaped."
"I want a charmed life"Everywoman said.
"A charmed life,is it?Well let's see what's available."
The next thing Everywoman knew she was sitting in front of a celestial computer,as the charmed lives of women all around the world came on-line.The faces were familiar but different in private than in public.Not very glamorous.She was told she could exchange her life for the life of any other woman.A woman's life appeared."How about her"? an angelic life-exchange counselor asked."Comfortable-there's a live-in housekeeper-but rather hectic.Had to put aside her career as a famous trial attorney because of her twin daughters' cystic fibrosis."
Everywoman asked to be shown other lives......
There was the beautiful woman beaten by her superstar husband.......The woman whose child was hit by a drunk driver & is now in a coma........The infertile woman who finally became pregnant only to dicover she had breast cancer.......The famous woman whose very public husband had a reputation for being a philanderer......The woman whose husband is about to go to prison for insider financial manipulation.
Everywoman was shaken."I asked for women with charmed lives,"she moaned."You've only shown me women with great sorrow,humiliation , pain,& despair in designer clothes."
"each of these women has been celebrated for her charmed life in those magazines you're so fond of reading.Time's up.What will it be"?
"Is it too late to choose Strength,grace,&wisdom?" Everywoman asked hesitantly.
"Good choice.Has anyone told you lately that you lead a charmed life?"
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PS:I still love my glossy mags & will not be giving them up any time soon.I love the products,lotions & potions,the fashion & most stuff relevant to health & beauty.I just keep it all in perspective & try to keep a balanced approach .I try to remember what other qualities are attractive in all people because they are certainly not envy,resentment,greed or constant anxiety over perceived physical imperfections.
It's best to make the most of what you do have.Play up your attributes.Do what you can,when you can,with what you've got.
.......And if all else fails,apply lipstick!It works every time.Go lipstick shopping if you have to,but put some on,smile,&carry on.
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