Beauty in the face comes from Grace not youth.
I am preparing for a talk I will be doing this weekend at a Women's Wellness fair. I have already done a talk on natural cosmetics and the importance of knowing what it is you are putting on your skin. This weekend I will cover this as well but I have been exploring the idea beauty. Here is a first draft of the article I wrote for Acupuncture Turning Point's March newsletter:
What am I trying to do with facial rejuvenation? Not reverse natural ageing of the face. Any efforts to that effect would be in vain, pun intended. Beauty is typically associated with healthy youthful persons. So by using treatments which bring the body to a state of well being the result can be reflected and expressed in the face radiating from the inside out. My goal is to get you feeling healthier, balanced, possibly put a spring in your step and naturally looking better.
What is in a face? Our face is how we are recognised; no other human has the exact combinations of features. Our emotions are expressed with our face. It is our mask we present to the world. Beauty also resides in the face.
Beauty is powerful. It will motivate us, softens our hearts, and results in powerful emotions just by simply observing it. Because it is such and intangible it is usually left only for the “eyes of the beholder”. Rushing around wrapped up in my own business I often find it takes slowing down to behold it. Or should I say once I have taken time I am often smacked in the face with it, life is indeed beautiful.
If you think that the beauty of your face is fading it is understandable then that some people may begin to feel insecure and powerless. Perhaps it is not the beauty that is fading. Youth and beauty are common bed fellows but I know you can have one without the other. I have witnessed it my self. I think what separates them is loving acceptance, and grace.
In his book “Dying to be Young” Eric Kaplan, talks about his and his wife’s recovery from becoming paralysed after having Botox injections. For those who still don’t know what Botox injections are it is the injection of a “safe” form of botulism toxin into the facial tissues paralysing the muscles making your expression lines appear “softer”. This is an extreme example but it shows the lengths some people are willing to go to feel young and beautiful.
My inspiring example of a graceful beauty is my Grandmother. Her elegance is a result of her impeccable classic style mixed with her moral and spiritual integrity. Her discipline is reflected in how she takes care of herself. She makes every effort to make sure she looks “put together” without a stitch of makeup. I don’t know that she has ever dyed her hair. It seems as if she is very proud of head of white wavy hair, and so am I.
Since focusing on facial acupuncture I have done some reading on Chinese face reading. In the book ‘The Face Reader’, Patrician McCarthy talks about specific markings on the face and their traditional meanings. Take for example the nasolabial grooves. These are the lines that run down the face from beside the nostrils to the out side corners of the mouth. Patrician explains that these are our lines of purpose, or Fa Ling lines. According to McCarthy, “these lines tell us if we are aware of our creative and spiritual purpose in life, if we have strong ideals, and to what extent we are following our true goals. Because they reflect our ability to eliminate the superfluous issues that bog us down and to nurture our essential talents, we should have Fa Ling lines by our early to mid forties.” She goes on to say that although it is fashionable, it is “tragic to remove evidence that we are on our creative and spiritual path”. A life with purpose is a beautiful thing.
