31 More Things – 8 – Makeup

These are from Ali’s 31 More Things class. More context here.

So here’s my day eight – makeup

(journaling below)

Journaling:
When I saw this prompt, my first instinct was to skip it. I don’t wear makeup so there’s no story there. But then I decided to go deeper. Most stories are interesting if I’m willing to go deeper.

I used to wear makeup. Just like I used to wear 6-inch heels and dye my hair blonde. Even though my looks were never the most important thing in my life, there was a time I did spend considerably more time thinking about how I looked and spending energy and money on makeup. This is not to say those things are not worth the money or the energy and there might very well be a time in the future when I do it all over again.

But not now.

At this moment, my time, efforts, and money go to other things. They go to keeping my body healthy, they go to colorful dresses that make me happy, they go to my kids’ education, they go to books. And art supplies. And many other things that are not makeup.

Looking at this photo, I am reminded that we go through different stages in life. And each of those stages feels eternal. As if they are forever and they are the new “truth” of my life. But they do end. The stages come and go. Some change slowly and some drastically but if there’s one guarantee, it’s that my life won’t look like this five years from now. I will have different priorities (however slight) and different hopes and wishes and worries. I will spend
my money and time and energy on different things than I do now. If I am lucky, none of it will be terrible. If I am lucky, we will still all be healthy and happy.

But, it will be different. And I will look back on these days and wonder why I worried so much all the things in my head today. And, in ten years, I will remember these days fondly, but also like they are a part of a distant past, just the way those makeup days feel to me now. In ten years, these days now will be a part of my history.

That’s the thing about life; it passes quickly. And this little prompt today ended up being a reminder that I would like to make sure I cherish these days while they are here. I nurture the person I am now. I give thanks for what we have. Amazing what a little prompt can do.