Aging: A Powerful Beauty Tip

In today's abundance of beauty lotions and potions, nips and tucks, that serve to resist and camouflage the signs of aging we rob ourselves of the most powerful beauty enhancement resource available to mankind. I'm speaking of the aging process itself.

The prevailing and repetitive message we ...In today's abundance of beauty lotions and potions, nips and tucks, that serve to resist and camouflage the signs of aging we rob ourselves of the most powerful beauty enhancement resource available to mankind. I'm speaking of the aging process itself.

The prevailing and repetitive message we get in today's media and societal consciousness is that youth is good; old age is bad. Youth is viewed as vibrant and desirable whereas old age is considered a burden and a deterioration of the body and soul. People fear aging and believe that if youth is relevant, they will become irrelevant in the autumn of their lives. Beliefs about age, like other beliefs, shape your experience. If young adulthood is considered the best time of life then old age is viewed as the opposite, a time of failure and decay.

Many who follow such beliefs try to hide from themselves desperately trying to be and stay young. The look upon their reflection in the mirror with horror as they watch their face slowly slide off of their face as the skin loses its elasticity. Some people fear aging so much that they are willing to slice and dice themselves into a sometimes unrecognizable appearance to ward off any evidence of the birthdays celebrated.

I get that people want to look the best they can. I want to look the best I can. Looking your best is about showing your finest self, not resisting yourself or even denying who you are and have become. The truth is, youth and old age have their place within the framework of spiritual growth. Each plays an important role. Old age is a highly creative part of living. People sometimes misinterpret the return to the playful appreciation of life expressed by many in their elder years as a sign of a detachment from the busy and 'relevant' world.

When a person becomes older and retires the mind is freed to use more, not less, of its abilities. There is a return to the luxury of creating with abandon. Shoulds and 'must dos' give way to whimsy. Some believe that this change is a sign of mental deterioration and think that their age has betrayed them, made them less than in some way. Some elderly people give into these beliefs as they view themselves as leftovers, shadows of their better selves and useless. The sad thing is many elderly people allow themselves to become their beliefs to conform to the societal definition of old age.

My father celebrated his 93rd birthday a few months ago. I flew to Miami to be with him on his birthday. While I love my Father dearly we've had a delicate relationship over the years. He didn't know what to make of me and I viewed him as cold and cantankerous. As I aged I realized that the two of us were stuck in what we thought a father and daughter 'should be' instead of allowing ourselves to experience who we are. Over the years my visits with my father seemed to be about whether or not I had a man in my life yet or whether or not my paycheck was big enough. I don't know what his perspectives of our visits were. I wouldn't be surprised if he felt that I didn't see him for who he was either. Truth is, I didn't.

What I saw before me on the day of my Father's 93rd birthday was a man with a glimmer in his eye, several jokes up his sleeve and an appreciation for that moment in time. And he was excited about the day ahead. What a delight! Here was the Father I had always wanted. He was there all the time. I never knew it. I never saw it. While he was busy being relevant in his younger working years, he let go of his creative joyful spirit. In his old age, he allowed himself to return to a state of grace. A state of grace is relevant, vibrant, influential and inspirational if we just take a moment to acknowledge the gift before and within us.

Grace is beautiful. People who live within a state of grace are beautiful. In the years spent busy building careers and hanging onto youth for dear life we are often in anything but a state of grace. We're stressed, restless, desperate, agitated; so busy busy busy doing that we forget about being. Embracing the approach of old age restores our state of graceful being-ness and the light within us shines. Nothing is more beautiful.

Perhaps one day society will cherish and value the wisdom and state of grace found in old age. Perhaps one day we will allow ourselves to openly rejoice our advancing years. Perhaps that day is today.