Forty-three trips around the sun + growing.

Today marks my 43rd trip around the sun, which means I am one year older, right? But what if I said I had grown another year? We emphasize aging, but what if we flipped the script and changed aging to growing?

We never tell a child, “you’re getting old”; we tell them they are growing. We fear aging in our culture, and it is no wonder. We are bombarded with thousands of quick fixes to stop the aging process. I bet if you scroll your Instagram feed, you will see countless women (and some men) telling you a little botox here and a little filler. You will be good as new. To tell you the truth, I want to give them a big 🖕🏻 for perpetuating the feeling of inadequacy. I am not anti 💉 it does have its place, and it’s a personal choice. I am concerned with the level of insecurity that has been placed on women & girls to achieve an unrealistic beauty standard. How do we teach confidence in self or value in self when we are told we only have value if we stay young forever?

Don’t get me wrong; I am all for slowing the physical aging process ( hello facials), but I am not chasing my youth or obsessing about my new wrinkle. I probably earned that scowling at my children. If you asked your children, partner, parents, or family if they would love/value more if you looked younger, they would look at you like you had two heads and were absolutely positively ridiculous. Seriously ask them.

Our value does not come from how we look; please read that again. Our value does not come from how we look. You may think this is a strange statement coming from someone that has been in the beauty industry for over twenty years. The health of your MIND|BODY|SOUL, will create more beauty that you will radiate than any quick fix can.

As I walk into this next year of life, I will focus on growing, not aging. I will expand my knowledge, wellness practices, health, emotional intelligence, and, most likely, skincare routine.