Age is only a number

All those trite sayings, appearance isn’t everything, don’t judge a book by it’s cover, beauty is only skin deep…yeah, tell that one to the 13 year old who wears bifocals or reading glasses over her contacts and just got braces and hasn’t yet lost her baby fat. This one is from the Bible, man looks on the outward appearance but God looks on the heart. I don’t consider this trite, I think it is much deeper than just saying who cares about your appearance God cares about your heart. But think about it, if you say this to the 35+ year old woman whose husband left her and her 3 pre-teen/young teenage kids for another woman and she has seen the reality that 15 pounds of leftover pregnancy weight (per child) and no education and job experience because she worked to finance his college degree and then stayed home and took care of the kids, it’s not going to be a big encouragement to her. She’s thinking “my heart is beautiful, but I can’t provide what my kids really need, THEIR DAD, and I’m lonely and will most likely always be this way.”
I was thinking about appearances at the gym last time I was there. There are women there with their hair fixed nicer than mine ever looks (Steve likes it natural and wild, happy to comply) even in ponytails. They have full make up on. My face absorbs make up. I put a coat on and can still see the brown spots on my right cheek. I put another coat on, can still see them. Powder, still can’t cover it up. When I put blush on, can’t see it, I add more and more, until you would think I looked like a clown, but still, can’t see it. Eye shadow is the same way. Put the lightest tone on, can’t see it, figured it was too light, so I tried the medium, and couldn’t see it, so thought it was my flesh color, put on the dark, and it’s dark, and it changes to my skin color as well. I wear two different types of mascara in multiple layers just so you can see my eyelashes. On the whole, I have just accepted this and do the best I can. But the outfits! Oh my. Some of these women are very well turned out for the gym. Everything is grey and pink, or neon green and black even down to their tennis shoes. I was wearing a white tee shirt I got from the fair for free 9 years ago with a pair of navy blue with white trim Umbro soccer shorts I have had longer than I’ve had Steve. He wears them most of the time. The sides of the leg are split and one side has ripped a little way up. I buy my tennis shoes by particular style and brand and will take whatever color they make them in that season. Of course, when I’m exercising, I’m all about comfort. I have my favorite running clothes, and they are what I wear. My friend Sheila is the same way even down to having two identical shirts except one is blue and one is green, and she likes one of them better.
I think we should make an effort to look decent, maybe even better than decent, appropriate for the location and activity, even maybe look our best??? I don’t think we should make ourselves crazy over this. The other day we were driving home from Walmart and we saw a couple, obviously retired, driving down the sidewalk in their golf cart. They seemed to be having a good time. My son laughs and says he loves old people. He can’t wait to be old. Why do we need to wait to be a certain age to feel free to do what makes us happy? I mean totally within moral and ethical and legal bounds. Why do we worry about what people think about us on things that don’t matter? If they don’t like your clothes (or shoes) who cares? If what you say isn’t offensive, they just disagree, who cares? Life is too short. I don’t share my son’s sentiment that I can’t wait to be old because I know what aging does to your body. But if freedom from people’s judgment comes with old age, I’m putting on my red hat and eating at Golden Corral.