The Return To Innocence

My mother is 57 today. She still barely looks 50.
As a rule, it seems, my parents and I never look our age. I have decided that after we hit age 25, our looks seem to regress a little with every birthday. Maybe it's just the way we take care of our health, along with the good genetics. My father is 66 and he still doesn't look much older than mid-fifties. Except for the salt and pepper hair, you really can't tell that he's past 60. If he dyed his hair back to black, he'd look even younger. All the photos of Dad when he was in his 20's to his 40's show an unbelievably youthful handsome guy. He was 39 when I was born and he looked 30. Mom looks exactly like her high school graduation photo -- when she was 16 -- save for slightly sagging jowls and some crow's feet. She also has that one white streak in her hair. She is graying, but she's been dyeing it back to light brown. Neither of them have thinning hair, either.
Of course, it probably helps that we are all short and skinny. My father can't gain weight to save his life. He still fits into his Navy uniform from forty-five years ago. And Mom naturally eats like a bird.
Steve didn't believe me when I said I'd turned 27 in April. I don't think anyone did. Hell, sometimes my own husband forgets what year I was born in. Yet I sound much older. I have had the voice and tone of someone in their 30's since I was 16. But since I was 16, I apparently have stayed young-looking. I think it's disconcerting to some people. Bartenders and bouncers always do double-takes between me and my photo ID.
And people wonder why I never wear T-Shirts with cutesy flowery rainbow unicorn heart pictures on them. When I was 20, I once went with Adam to a bar that accepted people over 18. I was wearing a white T-Shirt with Mickey Mouse on it, my hair in braids; and the bouncer was convinced that my ID was fake and refused to let me in.

I take impeccably good care of my skin from the inside out. Exfoliation, moisturizing, supplementation. It does show. My cousin Robbie once told me I could do cosmetics commercials. But looking young when you are older only works if you can convince people you actually are an adult.

Ahh, youth is fleeting. Everyone wants it. Just be careful what you wish for.

My mother is 57 today. She still barely looks 50.
As a rule, it seems, my parents and I never look our age. I have decided that after we hit age 25, our looks seem to regress a little with every birthday. Maybe it's just the way we take care of our health, along with the good genetics. My father is 66 and he still doesn't look much older than mid-fifties. Except for the salt and pepper hair, you really can't tell that he's past 60. If he dyed his hair back to black, he'd look even younger. All the photos of Dad when he was in his 20's to his 40's show an unbelievably youthful handsome guy. He was 39 when I was born and he looked 30. Mom looks exactly like her high school graduation photo -- when she was 16 -- save for slightly sagging jowls and some crow's feet. She also has that one white streak in her hair. She is graying, but she's been dyeing it back to light brown. Neither of them have thinning hair, either.
Of course, it probably helps that we are all short and skinny. My father can't gain weight to save his life. He still fits into his Navy uniform from forty-five years ago. And Mom naturally eats like a bird.
Steve didn't believe me when I said I'd turned 27 in April. I don't think anyone did. Hell, sometimes my own husband forgets what year I was born in. Yet I sound much older. I have had the voice and tone of someone in their 30's since I was 16. But since I was 16, I apparently have stayed young-looking. I think it's disconcerting to some people. Bartenders and bouncers always do double-takes between me and my photo ID.
And people wonder why I never wear T-Shirts with cutesy flowery rainbow unicorn heart pictures on them. When I was 20, I once went with Adam to a bar that accepted people over 18. I was wearing a white T-Shirt with Mickey Mouse on it, my hair in braids; and the bouncer was convinced that my ID was fake and refused to let me in.

I take impeccably good care of my skin from the inside out. Exfoliation, moisturizing, supplementation. It does show. My cousin Robbie once told me I could do cosmetics commercials. But looking young when you are older only works if you can convince people you actually are an adult.

Ahh, youth is fleeting. Everyone wants it. Just be careful what you wish for.