Tonight I took my makeupless face to a club to hear my friends band, 8 Bit Dynasty.
Little plug, download their EP from Itunes for only $2.99!
I've known this gifted group of musicians for years, some of them for over a decade. I met them as students at the college where I once worked as liaison for the music program. Most of them, at some point, sat in my office and shared their lives, their hopes, their struggles, their dreams and their jokes with me. Some I worked closely with, toured with, some I watched develop at a distance. And there they all were together on stage sounding amazing and my heart was filled with gratitude.
Gratitude for the opportunity I've had to be in their lives. Gratitude for the smiles they greet me with when I show up. Gratitude for knowing glances when inside jokes are made. Gratitude for all the laughter I've shared with each of them. Gratitude for allowing me to be me and gratitude for the music they have brought into this world.
What does this have to do with No Makeup May? Absolutely everything! For tonight they were the mirror through which I saw myself. Tonight I saw myself as the person who inspired them, who they admired, the person they want to share their funny stories with, to make me laugh, the person to be a witness to their greatness. I am the person who is beautiful without makeup, I am a musician, an artist, a friend.
I have said that I wish I could see myself as others see me because then I might see myself more truly. My eyes dart too quickly to the rolls on my sides, the circles under my eyes or the
dimples in my thighs (huh, that rhymed). But these people, my friends, see me and I'm pretty confident they think I'm pretty swell. And perhaps if I spend less time obsessing about every little physical flaw and more time on the love of my friends and the love I can give back to them, then maybe, just maybe, I will begin to see what they see when they look at me.
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