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Do we feel the need to mask our true selves when we go out and apply makeup as a kind of war paint to help us deal with everything life throws at us?
“Ma, does everyone wear makeup once they grow up?” asked my eight year old; watching me apply makeup in preparation for an outing.
As I looked into her eyes, shining with innocence and naiveté, I was transported back in time to when I had been but six years old and had asked my mother a similar question. My mother had unhesitatingly replied in the negative saying, no baby! Only grown-up women wear makeup. Of course, back then she had been talking about cosmetics.
However, when my daughter asked me the same question, it made me reflect on where the human race had reached. For, have we not reached a point wherein, we are all wearing makeup? Wearing makeup to conceal our true intentions and to hide behind layers of deception in order to mask our true persona? Are we not today unable to wear our emotions on our sleeve for fear of being ridiculed? Do we not wear indifference as a cloak and masquerade a bravado that we rarely feel? Do we not screen every bit of information received for hidden meanings? Are we not constantly trying to read between the lines? Are we today, not suspicious of random acts of kindness?
Although, I answered my child in much the same vein as my mother had answered me, yet, for a moment I had been tempted to answer her in the affirmative. I had been tempted to introduce her to the harsh reality of life which makes us insecure as we grow up. It makes us insecure to the point wherein we all sink into the mire of lies and deceit; and from wherein we start deriving our chief comfort. It makes us start to mask our true emotions and makes us cloak our inner innocence in layers of concealment.
I wonder – would it be so difficult to learn to trust once again in the simple things that life has to offer? Would it be so difficult now to accept a helping hand or respond to a warm smile or assist a stranger in distress, every once in a while?
What would it take? Let’s evaluate. It would probably take opening our heart not just to love and warmth but also to spontaneity and spunk. It would probably take indulging in another’s joy and partaking in another’s sorrow. It would definitely take being more trustful and less suspicious of others’ intentions. More than anything else, it would take changing ourselves; changing ourselves to become more receptive. More receptive to the goodness that life has to offer. It would also take adapting ourselves to the changes that occur lest we endanger our changes to extinction.
However, the question still remains – can we do it?
Image source: pixabay
Sonal is a multiple award winning blogger and writer and the founder of a women-centric manpower search firm - www.rianplacements.com. Her first book, a volume of poetry - Islands in the stream - is slated read more...
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UP Boards Topper Prachi Nigam was trolled on social media for her facial hair; our obsession with appearance is harsh on young minds.
Prachi Nigam’s photo has been doing the rounds on social media for the right reasons. Well, scratch that- I wish the above statement were true. This 15-year-old girl should ideally be revelling in her spectacular achievement of scoring a whopping 98.05% and topping her tenth-grade boards. But oddly enough, along with her marks, it’s something else that garners more attention – her facial hair.
While the trolls are driving themselves giddy by mocking this girl who hasn’t even completed her school yet, the ones who are taking her side are going one step ahead – they are sharing her photoshopped pictures, sans the facial hair, looking nothing less than a celebrity with captions saying – “Prachi Nigam, ten years later”.
Doctors have already diagnosed her with PCOD in their comments, based on photographic evidence. While we have names for people shamed for their weight – body shaming, for their skin colour- racism, for their age- age shaming, for being a female- sexism, this category of shaming where one faces criticism for their appearance has no name. With that, it also has zero shame attached to it.
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