The Price of Beauty

"It is the heart of a woman that makes her beautiful" OPRAH

Beauty is an illusion and beauty differs from country to country. In India, you drink cow urine to become beautiful, in Japan you go in a fish spa where the fish eat the dead skin off of your body, in Morocco you do a tea dance with a tray of various teas on your head. In China, they attempt to look like Barbie when genetically they could never look like her so they are aspiring to look like something they could never be. Women around the world try liposuction, tummy tucks, breast augmentation, leg lengthening, face lifts, face masks, botox, saunas, tanning beds(except in Japan where they bleach their skin because dark skin is considered ugly) The Burmese elongate their necks while African women stretch their ears. Native Americans find their hair to be the most beautiful. There are even countries where stretch marks and obesity are considered incredibly sexy. In China, women are getting plastic surgery to get their eyes changed so that they look more "American" instead of "Asian" They change the shape of thier eyes and put steel rods in their legs in order to be taller. The pressure that women feel to be beautiful and the pressure women feel to be( here in North America and in many other countries) thin and perfect is unfair and, most of the time, unrealistic. In the world, the amount of money spent to look and feel beautiful is unbelievable. The media puts so much pressure and it is unfair to all those watching it and wanting it. Women should define beauty from the inside. The beauty industry alienates the majority of women and the idea of beauty is hard to attain. Various sizes and looks should be celebrated.

That which is striking and beautiful is not always good, but that which is good is always beautiful. ~Ninon de L'Enclos
Beauty isn't worth thinking about; what's important is your mind. You don't want a fifty-dollar haircut on a fifty-cent head. ~Garrison Keillor

All of the crap I see makes me incredibly sad, I don' t know if I am just a feminist and taken a bunch of Women and Gender studies courses in University or have traveled and seen things but I do not think that it is fair that we are always expected to look a certain way and be perfect. It only makes us feel terrible about ourselves and turns us into people that judge others based on their looks and more importantly, judge ourselves. I really don't think that women will change until men change. If men want it, the women do it. The more the media shows certain types of women...the more men think that is real and want that. Either way, I think if you use your wit, brains, humour and empathy, personality you will show that you are beautiful and one by one we can change the world view of what beauty REALLY is. I think that the all of the little girls of the world should not feel this pressure... I know when I have a daughter I would die if she did not feel happy and beautiful and those of you with kids or having kids probably feel the same.

The thing is I don't know what to do but I want to do something. Women have come so far in the past 40 years and they are strong and able to run things and still looking great! Dove has a great campaign and also I worked with Girl Guides this year and they have a similar message. Anyway, you are all beautiful, smart, funny and special and I love you!