20. The face of old age
Welcome back to my podcast, Learning How to Be Old, and brace yourself for a hard look at the face of old age. When I was only 74 and I still had a bad case of ageism, I didn’t like the look of old people. Now I look in the mirror and I see an old woman’s face — and strange to say, I don’t particularly care.
Dr Susanna Kent and I recorded this episode on my 85th birthday and we had a lot of fun, which I’m keen to share with you.
I demanded that Susanna explain why I’ve got dead-gorse-bush hair, non-existent eyebrows, and so many scars and wrinkles. I questioned random pedestrians: as you’ll hear, most said they don’t look at the face of a new acquaintance but into their eyes — or in one case, at their clothes! They look to see whether a person is approachable. They look for the essence, the spirit of a person. Which has nothing to do with wrinkles. And this episode ends with two poems I’ve written about makeup. One, “Making Faces”, I wrote in my 30s. The second, “Beauty Tips For Older Ladies”, I wrote in my 70s.
How attitudes change as time passes! And how differently various people see the face of old age.
- Manuka Health Care Centre
- Aging Beauty — instant poem, WriteIntoLife.com
Really enjoyed this episode. Such humour and honesty. Looking forward to more episodes!
So glad to hear it. Today, Pinky Agnew on friendship.
Great! more on their way.
Thank you!