Make-up

I used to wear make-up every day.

But one day, back when we were dating, Matt told me he didn't understand why women used make-up. He told me I looked fine without it. And it got me thinking...men don't wear it, and women find men attractive all the same. So why should I spend 5-10 minutes every morning putting on a different face, not to mention all of the money spent on that expensive products.

I stopped wearing it as much, gradually. Then I only wore it on special occasions. And now, I only wear it on VERY special occasions.

This post is not meant to pass judgement on the many women I know who wear make-up; I do think it makes women look very nice, when done tastefully. I am simply reflecting on how *strange* of a concept it is, and how we have made such a trend of it. We paint our face in order to look like ourselves, but better. But why do we need to look better? What was wrong with ourselves in the first place? And why do [most] women wear make-up but not [most] men? And why do women shave their legs? Why do fair skinned people go tanning? Why do women do their hair, but men don't? These are thoughts that come from the same vein.

Women, why can't we be comfortable in our own skin? I guess if we did that we wouldn't even wear clothes. Ah, Adam and Eve.

To clarify, I'm speaking mostly about the act of wearing make-up daily as a part of our socially-acceptable appearance. I'm not speaking about wearing make-up as a means of decorative art), or as part of a costume. Those are implemented with slightly different motivations, which I don't want to address here.

Our society causes us do strange things, and causes us do them without question. When I was a teen, I was told with reprimand that I didn't wear make up enough. In hindsight I see how that played into some of my other beliefs at that time, chiefly that superficial appearance was extremely important, and that it was not appropriate for me to bring my naked face/hair out into the public. I have since largely rid myself of these thoughts, and have noticed that I rarely talk about issues of appearance with anyone anymore. It's quite liberating, friends.

The way we look has it's place, and I get that. For example, first impressions are important, most would say. But what would happen if women skipped the make up for that job interview? What would happen if they didn't use mascara at the school's first open house? I'd venture to guess it would not make one lick of difference in the end. Of the things that leave a mark on humankind, beauty derived from make up is definitely not a value I place with high merit.

And, just to curb some of the criticism that I'm likely to receive, I'm not using the discussion on make-up as a replacement for "care of the body." I think that caring for our body through exercise and healthy eating will ultimately affect who we are on the inside while also making us beautiful on the outside too. <3 span="">

I'm just throwing thoughts out there. Many dear friends and family members of mine wear make up every day, but I just want to know what's wrong with the way we are?