These days, it seems everywhere we turn, we’re surrounded by ways we could be better. Athletes in advertisements show off perfect six-packs. TV couples share flawless relationships, or single folks live the perfect single life. Stunning celebrities in their golden years smile down at us with smooth skin that no “real” person could ever have at 50+.
Even when Googling “why wrinkles are good” in preparation for this article, the 4th and 5th results tout crease-minimizing moisturizers and a list of ways to reduce your wrinkles. Further on, I came across an article with the title “Should You Stop Smiling to Prevent Wrinkles?”.
But the truth is, wrinkles are natural. Wrinkles are – mostly – unavoidable. And wrinkles are good.
Smile lines around your mouth might be a hassle for concealer, but they announce to the world that you’ve had a happy life, full of love and laughter. Creases at the corners of your eyes might be due to too many hours squinting in the sun, but that just means you’ve worked hard or played hard in your life, and no doubt learned plenty of lessons doing so.
Despite the results of my web search, there are certainly no shortage of internet offerings encouraging you to fall in love with your wrinkles – and therefore yourself, all over again.
For example:
1. Bustle recently shared an article about embracing those crinkly lines, which begins with calling out most age groups for even thinking they have wrinkles. “Bona fide wrinkles are what 80-year-olds usually have,” they point out.But that doesn’t mean you shouldn’t love those whatever-you-want-to-call-’em creases at every age! The article goes on to emphasize that you got those lines because you’re expressive. To my mind, that translates to being unafraid to share the emotions you experience, and if that’s not something to be proud of, what is?
2. An article published in the Sydney Morning Herald (in Australia) last year, writer Andrew Woodhouse argued that removing your wrinkles is a way of hiding emotions and “removes a history of happy moments.” Your wrinkles are created especially for you, and to worry over their existence is just a waste of valuable time you could be spending on another exciting adventure.
3. Then there’s this lovely “faux” advertisement, also from Australia, that charmingly lists the many different types of wrinkles one might have. Are we really that surprised that Australians, who carry a stereotype of the all-natural earth child, seem to be big on aging realistically?
And finally, if you’ll allow me to add my own two cents to this important discussion:
4. By embracing and celebrating your face’s little “imperfections” (though, as Andrew Woodhouse says, “wrinkles are not imperfections, they’re reflections”), you’re passing an important message on to the next generations. You’re telling them “Hey! I might not have the flawless, silky smooth skin of a 14-year-old, but that’s because I’m not 14! I have lived an exciting, interesting, informative life full of lessons, and love, and being one with the earth.”
Isn’t that a better legacy to pass down than the best $50/oz face cream for hiding everything you’ve accomplished?
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