Little Girl Eyes

I was born and raised in New Jersey but every summer we would visit my father’s family in Miami Florida for Summer Vacation. We would stay at my Grandmother’s house or Nana as we would call her. Nana did not speak English, and I did not speak Spanish very well, yet somehow we communicated beautifully. My Nana’s home was welcoming and accented with beauty. It wasn’t overpowering, just pleasantly beautiful. There was the sparkle from the crystal teardrops hanging from her lamps and the curves on the furniture that caught ones attention. Upon entering her home, you knew that beauty was important to her.

As for her appearance, the same held true. Nana had a beautiful olive complexion and wore her dark brown hair curled up in a beehive style. She wore a flattering shade of red lipstick and not much more in the way of makeup. She loved gold jewelry and stylish clothes. Her elegant style always caught my attention. I knew as a young girl that my Nana was beautiful. My “little girl eyes” knew she was older, but after all she was a Nana and Nana’s were supposed to be older! My “little girl eyes” didn’t judge age; they simply took in the grace and beauty of my Nana.

Now I can’t talk about my Nana’s inner world because I know nothing about that, but I do know that she presented acceptance, beauty and grace to the world, and I am a better woman because of her.

Looking your personal best will change as life changes. As women we go through many phases, cycles and states of being--from young woman, mother, mature woman, pregnancy, sickness, weight gain and so on, yet we can still make a choice to look our personal best. This isn’t about letting society determine our beauty--it is about us determining our own Beauty! When it comes to determining our own beauty I can’t help but think of the beautiful Japanese philosophy of Wabi Sabi. This philosophy sees imperfection as ideal because it says that perfection doesn’t exist and flaws are seen as adding interest. So when determining your own beauty keep in mind that those beautiful laugh lines are a sign of experience and the blessing of being able to smile.

All too often we get caught up in the notion that youthful beauty is the only beauty that exists. By doing this, we not only hurt ourselves--we also deny our daughters, granddaughters, nieces and all the young girls in our lives the chance to see us as beautiful through their “little girl eyes”. Without healthy role models, we make it that much more difficult for them to accept their own beauty throughout the seasons of their lives.

Being beautiful is a lifelong decision. Please don’t fall into the trap of assigning beauty to a particular age. Make up your mind right now to Be Beautiful Always!