Oh my god Richa this is just SO GOOD! I want to quote 15 different lines in this post. All so real and so true. Concepts that I've been grappling with so much since I turned 30 as well. As always I am grateful for your writing and point of view <3
Richi Vadini Singh: As far as beauty in a woman, throughout my own 76 years, even in my twenties I had found that a woman's beauty becomes grand in her forties and beyond, and there are radiantly beautiful women in their eighties, even older, if one has but eyes to see.
Singh. India. They are beautiful and ancient in wisdom. As a Catholic, I love the Brihadaranyaka Upanishad and the Chandogya Upanishad, not to speak of the Bhagavad Gita. These are core to my own Catholic spirituality.
My own same-age wife, Nancy, is radiant in her beauty, and very much the foundation of the beauty that radiates is inner spirituality and intellectual depth and her will.
A man is blessed who is in love with a woman of strong will and spirituality, and Nancy has shaped my own long legal career as a judge advocate in the Air Force Reserves (Lt Col, Retired) and a civilian attorney within the Navy Office of the General Counsel (GS-905-15, Retired), and determined where we lived, and decided how many kids. Such a woman fills one's whole life.
Nov 4, 2023·edited Nov 4, 2023Liked by Richa Vadini Singh
What a stimulating piece! You have consistently shone a bright light on ideas and notions which most people have come to terms with as 'seemingly innocuous' to expose the invisible roots of imbalance. It makes one wonder about the rigour behind the writing to put it in such relatable words and your readers have reaffirmed your efforts. Stating the obvious here that this has all the signs of a hit-piece with the comments so far.
I was pleasantly surprised to see that this was the second part. Waiting to appreciate the next part of this. Grateful to have found you and your writing. :)
Your gushing praise of my writing has me fall short of words! Thank you for always being able to see my work for all that it is meant to be, and for truly valuing it. <3
My mom used every notion and lotion to prevent her from aging. She aged. My dad told me a decade ago my choices would be drying up, they haven't. Old conceived thought processes only hold us in place if we let them. I was always focused on the essence instead of the presentable. I am aging. I turn 64 in 42 days. I like the fact that nobody is in my business unless I invite them. I don't pay for pain and I've never worried too much that I'm not careful with my face or skin or insistence on presenting myself so acceptable. My mom was wracked with wrinkles at 85. All those lotions didn't prevent that. All the toxic chemicals in the lotions, perhaps assisted in helping her gain her dementia. I'm learning to care less and less on the shoulds and revel more and more on the freedoms. Beautiful piece though dear Richa!
Thank you, Lisa, for taking me through what is possibly the most commendable way to “defy” age. Your kind of pursuit is the only anti-ageing solution we need.
I love how you ask the most searing questions in such simple language. For example- are we "misleading" people just as we age? And just like Avery, I want to quote fifteen different lines from this post. This is such a needed piece of writing. And there is something so affirming and validating about reading your words, finding my own unarticulated discomforts expressed so lucidly through this piece. I loved this-
" We believe we’re simply talking about innocuous things like makeup and skincare, but we’re doing something far more insidious—breeding a culture of hypocrisy, one that values authenticity in appearance but not in essence. "
I'm also a 34, F and I've only just begun to understand myself and my life. It's a relieving type of clarity, and I finally feel like some version of my authentic self. It's both hilarious and antagonizing when folks talk to me like I'm some dinosaur. No one flinches when literal heads of states peak in their 70s and 80s.
Wow, yes, that’s so true about heads of state. I suppose it necessarily takes a double standard for any kind of shaming to work effectively (and insidiously).
Oh my god Richa this is just SO GOOD! I want to quote 15 different lines in this post. All so real and so true. Concepts that I've been grappling with so much since I turned 30 as well. As always I am grateful for your writing and point of view <3
Thank you so much, Avery! I'm glad and grateful to have found a reader in you. <3
Richi Vadini Singh: As far as beauty in a woman, throughout my own 76 years, even in my twenties I had found that a woman's beauty becomes grand in her forties and beyond, and there are radiantly beautiful women in their eighties, even older, if one has but eyes to see.
Singh. India. They are beautiful and ancient in wisdom. As a Catholic, I love the Brihadaranyaka Upanishad and the Chandogya Upanishad, not to speak of the Bhagavad Gita. These are core to my own Catholic spirituality.
My own same-age wife, Nancy, is radiant in her beauty, and very much the foundation of the beauty that radiates is inner spirituality and intellectual depth and her will.
A man is blessed who is in love with a woman of strong will and spirituality, and Nancy has shaped my own long legal career as a judge advocate in the Air Force Reserves (Lt Col, Retired) and a civilian attorney within the Navy Office of the General Counsel (GS-905-15, Retired), and determined where we lived, and decided how many kids. Such a woman fills one's whole life.
A woman's true beauty comes from inner strength.
Thank you for this wonderful comment! Glad to learn about your life, and the role that Nancy has played in it. :)
34, F: the title aptly sums up the core idea of age and the (female) body.
you peel the layers and layers of mask (makeup) , with layers and layers of thought provoking insights.
your writing is a mirror to one-self and thanks for making one see the naked-self.
one of the few rare things that don't age is your writing. It is age-less and as relatable and as evocative in any point in time.
I’m fascinated by how you use the metaphors from my own piece to add a creative spin and a deeper layer to everything that I write. Always grateful!
What a stimulating piece! You have consistently shone a bright light on ideas and notions which most people have come to terms with as 'seemingly innocuous' to expose the invisible roots of imbalance. It makes one wonder about the rigour behind the writing to put it in such relatable words and your readers have reaffirmed your efforts. Stating the obvious here that this has all the signs of a hit-piece with the comments so far.
I was pleasantly surprised to see that this was the second part. Waiting to appreciate the next part of this. Grateful to have found you and your writing. :)
Your gushing praise of my writing has me fall short of words! Thank you for always being able to see my work for all that it is meant to be, and for truly valuing it. <3
My favourite line here was “memory keepers of marketing claims”. 💛
Thank you! I think I had an aha moment while writing that :)
My mom used every notion and lotion to prevent her from aging. She aged. My dad told me a decade ago my choices would be drying up, they haven't. Old conceived thought processes only hold us in place if we let them. I was always focused on the essence instead of the presentable. I am aging. I turn 64 in 42 days. I like the fact that nobody is in my business unless I invite them. I don't pay for pain and I've never worried too much that I'm not careful with my face or skin or insistence on presenting myself so acceptable. My mom was wracked with wrinkles at 85. All those lotions didn't prevent that. All the toxic chemicals in the lotions, perhaps assisted in helping her gain her dementia. I'm learning to care less and less on the shoulds and revel more and more on the freedoms. Beautiful piece though dear Richa!
Thank you, Lisa, for taking me through what is possibly the most commendable way to “defy” age. Your kind of pursuit is the only anti-ageing solution we need.
I love how you ask the most searing questions in such simple language. For example- are we "misleading" people just as we age? And just like Avery, I want to quote fifteen different lines from this post. This is such a needed piece of writing. And there is something so affirming and validating about reading your words, finding my own unarticulated discomforts expressed so lucidly through this piece. I loved this-
" We believe we’re simply talking about innocuous things like makeup and skincare, but we’re doing something far more insidious—breeding a culture of hypocrisy, one that values authenticity in appearance but not in essence. "
Thank you so much, Arpita! Your words of appreciation are most encouraging. <3
I'm also a 34, F and I've only just begun to understand myself and my life. It's a relieving type of clarity, and I finally feel like some version of my authentic self. It's both hilarious and antagonizing when folks talk to me like I'm some dinosaur. No one flinches when literal heads of states peak in their 70s and 80s.
This essay spoke to me! <3
Delighted to meet another 34, F!
Wow, yes, that’s so true about heads of state. I suppose it necessarily takes a double standard for any kind of shaming to work effectively (and insidiously).
Thank you for reading, Uthara!