12th March 2023

I was reading about how many people, women and men, now use invasive cosmetic procedures as a weapon against ageing. Personally, now that I’ve recovered from my second bout of Bell’s Palsy, I’m so glad that my facial muscles, frowns and all, are actively working again. No way I’d want to stop that. But the truth is: what people really want is not to grow old and not to die. No amount of cosmetic enhancements will change that. I sometimes wonder why adults don’t revert to wearing school uniform in the relentless drive to fool themselves they’re still young. When I see 80 year old popstars on stage, I laugh at their foolishness.  The way we look at ourselves as a society needs to change. Somewhere along the line, we stopped revering the older generation. Years ago, young people would naturally turn to their grandparents for the wisdom they gleaned over their long life. Back then, grey hair and wrinkles were not seen as things to be erased but to be relished. They were signs that they’d reached that coveted stage in life where they’d passed their apprenticeship. Ancient civilisations knew this subliminally, fêting their elders for what they’d achieved, and glorying in their hard-won life education. Forget what you look like to others. Beauty comes from within. Embrace the wisdom.