Whether the lipstick index holds validity in today's economy or not... sometimes the gift of color brought to you in a small package is all it takes to boost your spirits. Spending $2 or $20 on that little tube of tint somehow makes the world a bit better. Do we look better? Maybe. But, it's bigger than that. More than the artifice of adding on. It's the idea of prioritizing "me."
Inevitably, in our everyday lives, we get caught up in the mundane - our self-defeating safety net in avoiding risk at all costs becoming addictive. But, like any addiction over time, it begins to chafe and burn until its unbearable weight becomes the very thorn in the flesh that forces us out of our dozing complacency and back into the world.
Neglect of self is unbecoming in its blatant abandonment of the soul. Far more than a lipstick lift, caring for oneself as if you matter raises the spirit in ways often beyond description. When our souls are livened, the inner fires burn hot and we exude a seductive vibrancy.
Life is full of color. A varietal of subtle hues and dazzling, messy stains. It isn't a distant destination at the end of the rainbow. It is in the right here and the right now. So, slap on those sunglasses, ease the seat back and release the break. You're in the driver's seat...
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Complacency is a state of mind that exists only in retrospective: it has to be shattered before being ascertained.
Vladimir Nabokov
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Beautiful meditation, Jennifer, and so completely true. So often we're the last ones we consider and yet to stay truly healthy and best able to fully engage and do our best - for everyone, including ourselves - we HAVE to pay attention and take care of even the smaller things that make our lives more colorful.
ReplyDeleteI hope you can continue to find more "lipstick" in your life. It's all about balance, isn't it? But you're here writing and that shows you've got your feet on both (all) sides of your very abundant plate!
I have to admit I'm a bit jealous of your ablitity to write with such clarity and to visualize a world in balance. I come home from work and can barely imagine writing a grocery list.
ReplyDeleteYou have inspired me do something for my soul this weekend.
I got my very first manicure on Wednesday. While more literal than what you describe, it has done wonders for my perspective.
ReplyDeleteThe key, I have been finding, is to find "the flow" in some of our daily activities. I have decided to banish NPR from 1/2 of my daily commute and just blast the music. It's helping!
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