Why I Don't Wear Makeup

I very much like and agree with the concepts contained in the article  below:

Why I Don’t Wear Makeup
 …. Excerpts from an article
by Aabye-Gayle Fracis-Favilla

Our culture is subtly (and not so subtly) waging war against the body — a result of an unhealthy obsession with youth and perfection. We tell women that they’re beautiful and that they should love themselves. We tell little girls to have self-confidence and that they can be anything they want to be.

But then, and often with the same breath, we suggest they can be beautiful (or confident) only when they are not quite themselves. We sell women (both young and old) products to “fix” or “improve” their appearance — wrinkle removers, concealers, eyelash enhancers, and other colorful cover-ups.

The young want to look mature. The mature want to look young. No one really wants to look like herself. Everyone wants to look unflawed. Feminine façades have become the norm — what’s expected. Maybe you’re born with it. Maybe you bought it (or had your plastic surgeon inject it).

I want to avoid falling prey to a self-erasing mentality when I look at myself in the mirror.

Bodies are imperfect and asymmetrical. Bodies come in a myriad of sizes, shapes and colors. Bodies grow older. I don’t want to view aging as an adversary, which I have to fight or the imperfections of my face and form as mistakes I have to hide. That’s not a safe approach to loving myself well.

I wish I could rid our culture of cosmetic dependence. I wish I lived in a world where every woman was encouraged to be satisfied with her face instead of bombarded by messages offering ways to improve it or cover over it. I wish the majority of our society viewed makeup as an optional accessory as opposed to the required response to any perceived deficiency.

I have enough insecurity that I’m working on. I don’t want to buy or apply more at the cosmetics counter. So I’ve made up my mind about makeup. At least for now, I’m not wearing it.

I don’t mean for this to be a battle cry. I don’t presume to speak for all women. If I’m going to be a woman capable of self-confidence and self-love, then I can’t allow my face to feel like a façade.

My hope is that all people will love their appearance, that wearing makeup (or dyeing one’s hair) won’t be compulsory, but something each person feels free to choose or refuse.