Farah's page in the yearbook

One year ago this month Farah graduated high school. Time flies! I just realized that I forgot to post her yearbook page. So here it is!

Kintsugi

The Japanese art of repairing broken pottery (Kintsugi) where the maker repairs the broken pieces using gold. It highlights the broken parts and imperfections; and the artist finds the piece more beautiful.   

imperfections are what defines us and sets us apart from others. This became particularly relevant to me when I stumbled across an article on Japanese ceramics. We live in a world where symmetry, perfection and eternal youth are idealized. Age and imperfections are undesirables. We tend to look on age as “damaged or worn”. Isn’t it sad that by doing this we deny the core of who we really are?

The article I came across was about the Japanese art of Kintsugi.  Kintsugi dates from the 15th century when a Japanese shogun sent a broken bowl to China to be mended.  It returned with crude ugly staples holding it together.  The Japanese craftsmen set about to find a more aesthetic alternative to restoring the bowl to its former glory.  This is how kintsugi was born.  They repaired the damaged ceramics with gold.  They believe if something has suffered damage, it has a history and is therefore beautiful. I love the idea of highlighting the repair instead of hiding it. Resilience is "soul gold". This struck me as a particularly beautiful philosophy.  Instead of attempting to hide the damage or flaws, they made these features of the new piece.  The vicissitudes of existence over time, to which we are all susceptible, could not be clearer than in the breaks, the knocks, and the shattering of the ceramic vessel.  This poignancy or aesthetic of existence shows a compassionate sensitivity and a belief that it has a beauty that is dependent on the very faults it seeks to mend, not by hiding them, but by celebrating them as part of the life of the bowl.  Mending the fissures with gold, made it not only decorative but even more valuable than before the damage was done.  More than just a means of repair, kintsugi promotes a hopeful philosophy; unexpected damage can be an opportunity for transformation and reinvention. 

Because I have daughters...

eyelid lift

Caps on teeth

Nose job

Tummy tuck

Breast implants

Which one?

Before labiaplasty

After

When is it too much? Eye lifts, capped teeth, nose job, breast implants, tummy tuck, skinny, and now labiaplasty? What are we as women doing to ourselves? I have daughters and a granddaughter- I think they're all beautiful. And, yet I have listened to my daughters talk about altering their bodies to look better.  It's not enough to be healthy. It's all about perfection. 

Did you grow up hearing any women say, “I am proud of my body”? I certainly didn’t.

The truth is that was and still is the state of our nation – even world. We’re bombarded with made-up images that tell us we have to look a certain way to have the life of our dreams. Everywhere we turn we see sex, youth, thin, tan.

Our magazine covers display false beauty and promote quick weight-loss. Our royalty (aka movie stars) have a team of people (stylists, make-up artists, hair designers) to guarantee they meet to the high standards and expectations of their glamorous life.

For me, I accept society’s model of beauty. I know when I walk into a grocery store I’m going to see an article about quick weight loss. I’m also going to see an article bashing a woman because she has cellulite. I know when I turn on the television I’m going to see a commercial for an anti-aging product or some advertisement sexualizing a woman’s body to sell their hamburger. Amber Krzys

I accept this as society’s reality…but I DO NOT accept it as my reality.

“As a child, I never heard one woman say to me, ‘I love my body’. Not my mother, my elder sister, my best friend. No one woman has ever said, ‘I am so proud of my body.’ So I make sure to say it to Mia, because a positive physical outlook has to start at an early age.” – Kate Winslet

What do you think?