Day of Natural Beauty

Last month I happened upon a Facebook event called Day of True Beauty. The mission of this day was " a worldwide celebration of true, natural, and inner beauty..." At the time I clicked "attend", I didn't realize what an impact this would have on me. No concealer, eyeliner, mascara, lip tint, NOTHING. While reading this, I'm sure most of you are thinking "big deal, I go without makeup all the time" or " she doesn't need makeup anyways." I assure you, this was one of the most difficult things for me to do. When I do something, I do it right; so this meant no foundation, concealer, eyeliner, mascara, eyeshadow, blush, lip stick, gloss, or nail polish.

When I woke up this morning I was excited because I really hoped to get a lot out of this day. However, as the day wore on I became less and less enthused. I realized that the view I have of myself is completely warped and for so long I have been hiding behind a mask of chemicals. Getting ready went a lot quicker since I only had to dressed! As I started walking around campus I became a increasingly paranoid because I noticed that I was getting a lot of glances. I couldn't help but think, "Oh my gosh he thinks I'm ugly because I'm not wearing any makeup" or "Ahh! She is staring at the discoloration in my skin." I was trying to reason with myself but the bad thoughts were in control.

After the day was about half-way finished I happened to pass by a mirror and I literally startled myself because I didn't recognize the face looking back. I was saddened when I realized that I no longer saw myself as I was, but for whom I pretended to be. The persona of "perfection" had become me and the real me had become the persona. I tried to think back and figure out when, why, and how this happened but I couldn't.

Upon further reflection a series of thoughts came to mind. As previously stated, I wondered why I didn't feel comfortable without makeup and when and how this came about. Most importantly, I conquered one of my greatest fears. In addition, I thought about what changes I would make for the future. While I will not be giving up makeup entirely, I think I will definitely be wearing less as well as have my own days of natural beauty more frequently. I will also be smiling more. It instantly makes you more beautiful because it is a physical manifestation of your inner beauty. With that, I encourage those of you who can't go without makeup to try au naturale for a day; and to those who already let their natural beauty shine, maybe try to go one day enhancing that beauty with a little makeup!

Have a lovely day you natural beauties!

Anna