Growing old gracefully

First of all I don't believe there is one perfect way to grow old gracefully. In my nearly seventy years on this earth, though, I have had the ability to watch many women age and some definitely do it better than others.

To dye or not to dye, that is not really a question.  I tried the embrace my natural gray hair way and then I dyed away, both professionally and at home. All of those seem valid to me. The only question I see is picking a color or style that compliments your face, skin tone, and lifestyle. A hank of dry dead hair spraying down your back will not make anyone look younger, or more attractive. Go for the shine! That's what makes young people so beautiful to look at. They are healthy!

All that glitters is not youth. For some reason older women start piling on the sequins and rings, bangles and baubles. If one necklace is good, three must be better. If God wanted you to wear one ring he'd have only given you one finger, right? If you are going for the aging gypsy look, all this works beautifully.

And then there is makeup.  Old flawed skin with its brown spots and wrinkles can be depressing to look at if you worship youth, but it is a fact of nature. More a fact if you've worshipped nature's sun, wind and water. You may have the leathery skin of a Norwegian fisherman, but daubing tons of blue eye shadow on your eyes and red rouge on your cheeks turns you into Emmet Kelly, not Grace Kelly. Keep it simple.

Embrace the inner you. When I look at the people I love I see what I feel for them, the sparkles in their eye, not the things covering them like an out of season Christmas tree. (unless those things block my vision.)