I hear that I look so much younger than my age all the time. I know it's meant as a compliment, and I take it as such, but quite honestly, I have no idea what to make of it.
Because I don't really know what looking my age is supposed to look like. I have this feeling it looks like what we expect from our parents' or grandparents' generations. You know, pre-sunscreen and staying out of the sun and moisturizing the shit out of your skin and whatever else.
I've got more wrinkles than I did in my 20s, but other than that, I've looked almost the same since I was in high school. Over the years I've weighed more and less, had longer and shorter hair, but my face hasn't really changed and nor has my body.
Also, I don't know what my age is supposed to feel like. I didn't feel grown up when I hit 21, and I didn't feel grown up when I hit 30, and the truth is, whenever I put on lipstick, I still feel like I'm trying to present myself as more grown up than I really am. Like I'm trying to fake it or something.
And I could say the same for my friends, whose ages vary greatly. So does this mean my friends all look young for their respective ages, too?
And then, if we all look young for our age, doesn't that actually mean we all look our age? Maybe we just don't look like whoever is saying it expects us to look.
Go to a high school reunion, and then measure yourself next to your peers. Then prepare for the boost in self-esteem when everyone else looks so crappy.
ReplyDeleteI don't look my age either, and if that allows me to hit on undergrads, so be it.
I have no idea what 30 is supposed to look like. I think that most everyone would say that they don't look their age. So, maybe, we all really DO look our age - we just don't think that we do.
ReplyDeleteES - I don't know - I didn't feel like people had changed all that much.
ReplyDeleteFK - Yes, exactly. If none of us look our age, then we all do. Which I think is the case.
I look my age, but I still get carded. What?!?
ReplyDeleteWell, according to tv, teenagers are supposed to look like young 20-somethings and middle-agers are supposed to look like late 20-somethings as well.
ReplyDeleteI'm starting a new blog, BookWise and Loving It. I hope you'll check it out.
I love that you posted this. I was asked multiple times how many years younger I was than my brother, when actually, I am 4 years older than him. I often wonder the same thing. While I don't have a good answer, I can tell you , I understand exactly what you mean.
ReplyDeleteI think you hit the nail on the head. We tend to measure appearances based on what people have looked like at that age in the past. In the old days a 30 year old woman wore a lot more of her life on her face than a contemporary woman. I know I look better at 40 than my father did at this age. Then again, I'm a better looking man, so maybe that's irrelevant.
ReplyDeletePeople simply live longer because we live a different life than the previous generation. All those nuclear duck and cover drills had to put stress lines on our parents' childhood faces.