Beauty is not real.
Yet somehow, the idea of it consumes the 17-year-old girl. She lives in a society where image is valued more than truth. Authenticity has been lost and is replaced with superficial appearances that mask the truths within. She is filled with socially constructed ideas of who she should be and what she should look like. Sitting in front of the mirror each morning, she applies makeup over every inch of her face; the desire to find beauty is overpowering.
But why?
Beauty is not real.
Yet, she feels it. Or maybe I should say she feels the lack thereof. The lurking absence of beauty is toxic to the mind. She looks into that mirror but she doesnt see, for she is far too busy searching, longing for something more than what the girl looking back at her has to offer. It is as if there is nothing more than what appears on the surface, every imperfection magnified. She lies in bed at night, wishing she looked like that girl in her math class that all of the boys chase after, the one who is effortlessly and perfectly beautiful.
But she is wrong.
Because beauty is not real.
Perception, however, is real. And I suppose that beauty only exists in perception. Frankly, life is all about the way in which we perceive. Our attitudes and beliefs revolve around the colors that we choose to paint the picture of ourselves and we often overlook the power and control that we have in the creation of that masterpiece. Your reality is as you perceive it to be. So why don't you choose to be beautiful?
Because you can't.
Beauty is not real.
Beauty as we know it is nothing but a false sense of reality; it’s a darkness shadowing over the confidence that every girl has long forgotten. It strips away all strength and self esteem, for it's a monstrous poison. The idea of beauty constrains us all.
The question is: why the hell do we let it?
Why do we let an unnatural idea shape our opinions? Why would we accept a definition of ourselves that is the farthest thing from true?
We have a choice. We can choose to believe in external beauty and support the internal war, forever being our biggest enemy, or we can make beauty real. We can light the fire in ourselves instead of covering up on the outside. We can choose to be strong, joyful and constantly radiating with pride and content. See yourself for who you are and not what you appear to be. Stop seeking the false sense of beauty and instead grow to become a woman that sees herself without the mirror - through the smiles she puts on the faces of others. See the world through the lens of truth and purity.
Beauty is not real.
Make sure you are.
