Good looking or looking good?

    Hello, lovelies.

     Have you ever looked in the mirror and wondered why some people more attractive than others? Why can't we all be stunning like Hollywood film stars? Are the people in magazines really that beautiful?  How come I missed out on the 'good looking' genes? Or is beauty only skin deep? 

    Waking up this morning, I stared, blurry-eyed, into the mirror and wondered why couldn't I have been born with a better bone structure? Why aren't my teeth perfect? How did I get so grey so quickly? Why can't I be as beautiful as other people? You see them everywhere. On TV, in films even walking down the street. I have some stunningly beautiful friends. Beautiful people are everywhere. Why can't I be one of them? Which got me thinking. Would my life be better if I was drop-dead gorgeous? Beautiful people are valued more highly in our society, aren’t they?  They definitely get more ticks and likes on social media, and what's is so wrong with that? It would be lovely to walk down the street and to be noticed by people, and not just because I had my skirt caught in my knickers. (True story) Beautiful people must love all the extra attention. Right?

    I have the most handsome neighbour. He makes my knees go weak every time I see him, which is most mornings as we leave for work at the same time. And every now and then I get his post through my letterbox so, in my neighbourly duty, I hand-deliver it through his letterbox. Sometimes he meets me on the doorstep, and if I ever try to  talk to him I end up making a total prat out of myself. Case in point, yesterday morning, as I handed over his post, I said loudly....
    
    "It's a good thing that I know where you live......Not in a stalker kind of way... I wouldn't want you to think that I'm stalking you..... I'm not a stalker......Bye then."

    I was mortified, and quickly scuttled away,  praying that I would never embarrass my self like that again. Which I probably will. My neighbor is a lovely guy and must hate the reaction he gets from crazy neighbours like me. From everybody. I was only looking at his face, and not taking time to really look at him. 

    We all like different qualities in our respective pin-ups. My bestie loves Idris Elba. I want to eat Jason Momoa. Two gorgeous men. Both stunning. So, which one of us is right? Me or my bestie?  Or is beauty in the eye of the beholder? And what would happen if I actually met Mr Momoa? I would probably act like a twit, say something completely unintelligible and burst out laughing. Not a good way to make a first impression. 

      The value we put on beauty is a construct that society has built over millennia, that has changed with every generation. What is beautiful today wasn’t a hundred years ago. Being beautiful doesn’t make you better person or a more sought after one. You can’t define a person by their hitting the genetic jackpot. Being born beautiful is a great thing, but so is being smart, funny, wise, kind and generous. The thing is, beauty is everywhere. Look around you. You can find it in books, in art, in nature, music, in history, with animals,  in Architecture. Beauty in the things that only you can do. There’s immense  beauty in language. You can have the most uplifting beautiful conversations. Read Shakespeare! Beauty is in people. Beauty is in all aspects of our lives for people like you and me. Beauty can't just be judged on looks. We are all complex, beautiful structures. 

    So as I stand in front of my mirror, maybe I am not destined to be the next Angelina Jolie, but that's okay. What I can do Is sit in a park, socially distancing with my friends, play with my dogs, laugh, eat cake and breathe. I can spend some time really looking at the world around me. And that's beautiful to me. 
                                                            

                             Hey Good Lookin! | Happy words, Words, Cool words





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