Beauty and Madness

Even beauty has also been defined by the society's standard, from the magazines, TV to the internet, these forms of media display a standard of how men and women should look like these days. If you are a man, you should look like a man, and if you are a woman, you should look like a woman. People, especially the younger generation follow this beauty standard to fit in and in fear of being judged by others. In the end, this physical image we worked so hard to maintain is still about impressing ourselves by impressing others.

I have been mirrorless for years, the only time I get to see my reflection is when I'm traveling or when I go outside to run a few errands. Probably it's just that I don't find it necessary to exert some effort in buying a mirror and putting it in my bathroom, or buying a small one and putting it in my pocket. I don't even have time for this simple task. I just feel like maintaining beauty should be without that much effort, besides, I couldn't care less about what other people think these days. Believe me, it is liberating.

Back in the days, I wasted so much time to dress for work. I spent like more than half an hour in front of the mirror, putting makeup and all these beauty products on my face. I bought all these clothes so people at work wouldn't judge me by saying that I wear the same all the time as if these clothes define me.

My environment is so toxic that my female colleagues seem to have nothing else to talk about but clothes, cosmetics, perfumes, and handbags. I admit that I had talked about these with them at some point but after having traveled, I no longer take interest in connecting with people only through these things. It is just too shallow and superficial. Now after years of not having to go to work, I have been used to not dressing up and putting too much makeup these days. What for? I have set myself free a long time ago which means I no longer care so much about the image to impress other people. The only thing I care about these days is my health. If ever I go back to the corporate world and have to face this type of work environment, I would probably just shuffle 3 clothes in a week and I wouldn't even care, as long as I'm productive and I'm bringing results. Actually, I feel like going back to work now just to do this in-your-face kind of not giving a fuck, it seems like kind of fun.

Let's not even blame the mirror, it is the people who are easily brainwashed and controlled by the media these days. Why do we have to look like those celebrities and models anyway, to feel good about ourselves or to impress other men and women? When I'm traveling, I can see the people in other parts of the world are so brainwashed by the western society's standard of beauty - long legs, super thin, white skin and large eyelashes? But who appear most of the time in the movies and advertisements these days? We can't really blame the ordinary people who want to change themselves especially if the archetype of beauty is being shoved into their throats, and that if they don't follow this standard, there would even be worse type of discrimination - we don't look like you.

There is no exquisite beauty… without some strangeness in the proportion.
― Edgar Allan Poe

I have a lot of more important things to take care these days that I even reduced my selection of clothes. If I am just going to the supermarket, I no longer need to spend a lot of time dressing up and putting a lot of makeup to look beautiful, especially when I will just be objectified on the street, the less attractive the better. It is not that I don't care anymore about looking good, I feel like I aim to just naturally look good. I realized that this can be achieved by being aware of what kind of food I eat, having a balanced diet and quitting bad habits. Besides, let us not forget this old cliché that beauty comes from within, if we are truly content and happy at the moment, then real beauty shines from inside out.

I can feel it when I go out and these girls would stare at my feet without nail polish, the way I dress (which is still the travelers' clothes of the not-giving-a-shit type of outfit) or my hair not too neat. I wouldn't even spend that much time and money on nail polish, not that I judge those who do, but really, I have more important things at this moment than care about what other girls think. It's even funnier as if looking at me from head to toe would make them pretty. Most people here are judgmental, if they see you not following the standard of beauty the environment and culture have shoved into them, you are just mad.

There are no bad pictures; that's just how your face looks sometimes.
― Abraham Lincoln

Let's not forget about the rise of social media that brought a generation of self-obsessed narcissists. Magazines used to be the number 1 form of media to advertise the standard of beauty, but now anyone can be a celebrity since the mass-proliferation of Facebook and Instagram. Beauty is now defined by how many likes your selfies would get, and it has even become deceptive due to different angle and filters that make average-looking people appear attractive. The corporations take advantage of this disturbing side of human beings, that there are now more beauty products and advertisements that cater to the selfie generation. I'm not going to wash my hands here and say that I don't have some selfies, as I treat these as some kind of art that I can insert in my posts. If taking a selfie people can give me millions by liking it, why not? But until then I wouldn't be so obsessed.

I cannot emphasize enough the benefits of achieving a minimalist life. We'll notice that if we stop focusing on artificial ways to look good, to stop spending too much time in front of the mirror and not be so obsessed with our self-image, we will be able to divert our attention to more important things in life. True freedom requires some courage, and achieving it by not letting ourselves be defined and controlled by the society's standards might disappoint other people, make us feel left out or might even hurt us in the process, but in the end, it's all worth it.