I attended high school in the early 2000s. Seemingly, every “popular” girl had two things: A Louis Vuitton purse, and a Von Dutch trucker hat. Both of the items were expensive, and both were ugly as sin.

I owned neither of them. I didn’t grow up in a family with money, so items like that wouldn’t have been just readily purchased for me. However, one day, I did acquire an item that was moderately expensive, and I realized that nothing in my current wardrobe went with it! Nothing!

At that moment, I realized that “keeping up appearances” is an exhaustive process, and unwinnable. You’ll never, in your life, acquire enough material things to “keep up.” There will always be someone who has more than you. To care about your appearance is futile. It’s a rat race, and it keeps you from being free.

I think about this a lot when I explore the idea of “aging gracefully.”

I decided in my early 30’s that aging gracefully beats the hell out of the alternative: trying to constantly alter your appearance to maintain the façade of youth.

What’s more pertinent is that youth and the image of youth that you see in the mirror have less to do with how you chemically alter the façade of your being, and more to do with you treating your body with love, and kindness.

Happy being who prioritize their nutrition, their sleep, and living their lives with purpose, happily, tend to carry a vibrant aura of youth.

Beauty doesn’t come from painting on your cheekbones every day. It comes from your vibe! Your spirit.

Plus, keeping up appearances, whether it’s with your body image or otherwise, is an unwinnable battle. It’ll never be enough. Someone will always have more, look “better,” own “more.” None of it is relevant to vibrancy or happiness.

Keep yourself free! Keep yourself happy!

If someone says you need to look a certain way, or they try to kill your beautiful vibe, learn to be assertive and tell them to fuck right off.

Vibrate high, baby!

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