The Signs of Joy

I’ve written quite a bit about how I don’t like to have my photo taken. That post is what started my family photo journey and I am deeply grateful for it. While I still don’t really care to have my photo taken, I’ve grown accustomed to seeing it and I do cherish the family photos very much.

There are many things that bother me about my face (and body) and I can list them for pages and pages. But the one thing that I don’t seem to mind is the lines on my face. I am always surprised when people around me look at their picture and comment on how old they look because of the lines around their mouth or eyes.

To me, that’s just a sign that you lived.

Not only do they not bother me but I am a huge fan of crow’s feet. They mean you smiled.

A lot.

There are signs of aging that are negative (in my opinion) because they point to neglect. Like not taking care of your body or teeth, etc. Like eating unhealthy food and not exercising (moving) enough. I’ve got a lot of these, too. I’ve been working in the last two years to fix these. It’s considerably harder to fix them when you’re as close to your forties as I am. But it’s not impossible. And I believe that anything that makes me stronger and possibly live longer (so I can see my kids grow and have families of their own) is worth trying.

Even the graying of my hair might bother me some times. Though I think that’s more conditioning than my personal opinion. Left to my own devices, I think I would have let my grays grow out. I find other people’s gray hair elegant. But I can see how it might feel unkempt to some people. I can understand gray hair as the sign that we’re getting old cause it’s not something that’s an outcome of something we actively do. It’s just the way hair changes over time.

But the lines are a direct result of smiling a lot. Of living life. Of facial expressions you’ve made over the years. To me, they always, always seem to represent happiness. Joy. It’s like the map of all the good times you’ve had.

I know you might get wrinkles on your forehead from frowning or worrying, too, but the crow’s feet is a clear sign of smiling. I would take a million crow’s feet over sorrow any day of the week.

And twice on Sunday.