|
|
Live On Fire!
Words seem inadequate to describe the beauty and abundance that surrounds us during the month of October in New England. Its as if Mother Nature has taken her paintbrush and with broad strokes has set the landscape ablaze in color. There are...
Living in Abundance: May the Force Be With You
Perhaps, you have heard the phrase “May the force be with you” from your favorite Episode of the Star Wars movies. The Star Wars movies explore the power of our choices, the wonder of destiny, and the power that is in us and all around us. However,...
The Attack & Defense of the Mail Order Bride Business (Part Two)
“You do realize that there is nothing about you as a person that would make anyone want to marry you, only things that you happen to possess by virtue of being lucky enough to be born in the U.S.” Amy I am a typical American man. My possessions are...
What is your creative retirement plan?
The idle are a peculiar kind of dead that cannot be buried.” Oriental proverb One thing is certain - when you do not have a creative challenge during your retirement years, the idleness and its accompanying despondency blots out any chance for...
Your Hidden Portal to Peace
Want more peace and joy in your life? Daily stress getting to you? With terrorism, layoffs and pollution, can you feel safe and happy? Yes, you can—by tapping into a little known, and less-used, doorway to internal security. This entry is...
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Frivolous and Impracticle
Be Frivolous and Impractical
I am meeting some girl friends for lunch at a little cafe later this afternoon and I am dressed as if I were stepping onto the runway of a New York City fashion show. I am wearing a simple red sweater with a black skirt, but the shoes I have on...they are an old flame. A love from my past.
These are not just shoes. These are the hottest looking pair of red Salvatore Ferragamo works of art. Stiletto heels and a little red and black polka dot bow on the back.
They could stop traffic on a busy street corner during rush hour standing all alone, and the best part about them is they make me feel powerful! They are impractical, but when I wear them I am fearless!
I love shoes. High-heeled or flat, wedge or stiletto, strappy sandals or a great pair of boots, just about any shoe that is impractical, could find a home in my closet.
I typically see a great pair of shoes, hunt down an outfit to go with them and then decide where I can go to wear this new ensemble. I know it sounds impractical, materialistic and completely backwards, but I got this from my grandmother, Annie Florio.
My grandmother was extremely practical and this is where her and I were very different. I have never heard anyone use the word practical in the same sentence with my name.
Of course growing up during the great depression, she was extremely frugal and never bought anything unless it was truly necessary. She washed and reused pieces of aluminum foil, even piecing the small scraps together to reuse later. She made most of her clothes and wore very practical shoes. I don't think she ever owned anything flashy...except for the single pair of glorious, red, Ferragamo shoes.
When I was only ten years old, I was playing hide and seek with my cousins and I had found a great hiding spot in the very back corner of my grandmother's bedroom closet. As I sat, I started looking through the neatly stacked boxes that were behind me.
At the bottom of the stack, sat a red and gold box. The box was so lovely that I knew it had to contain certain treasures. As I carefully lifted the lid on this wonderful box, my heart began to race and I suddenly felt hot. The contents were beyond wonderful. Not even in magazines had my eyes ever seen such beauty.
It was love at first sight. Almost in a trance, I gently lifted these precious gems from their slumbering bed and ever so slowly slipped them onto my size five feet.
I stood quickly and tried to rush to the full-length mirror across the bedroom, but before I could catch a glimpse of their magnificence on the ends of my skinny
chicken legs, I tripped and twisted my ankle.
I must have let out a yelp, signally my grandmother, because suddenly I could hear her wooden clogs clacking down the tile hallway. I scrambled to my feet and tried to get the treasure back to its hiding place.
When the door opened I spun around and my face gave away my transgression. I began to explain that I just happened to find these shoes and told her they were the most beautiful things I had ever seen.
She took the box into her hands like a lost lover and began caressing the lid. She told me she had bought them when she was in her thirties. My mother and aunt were just children and they didn't have a lot of money, but when my grandmother spotted them in a little shop somewhere in San Francisco, she was smitten.
She never went anywhere dressy enough to warrant wearing such beautiful shoes and she didn't own anything that would match their splendor. But she knew she had to have them, so she put a little bit of money down on them that day and told the clerk to hold them for her. She made the trip back into the city each week to deposit more money until she could take them home with her.
But I didn’t understand. These shoes were over twenty years old and yet they were still brand new, unblemished. Why, if she loved them so much did she never wear them? She said she kept them hidden away for a special occasion, but admitted that every time she thought about wearing them she said she feared people would think she was frivolous and impractical, so they laid unworn, prisoners to her fear.
What did these words, “frivolous” and "impractical" really mean and why would they cause a grown woman such fear?
When I was forty, my grandmother passed away and as her children and grandchildren divided her jewelry and china, the only thing I asked for was the gold and red box in the very back corner of her bedroom closet.
It is time to head out for lunch and I am reminded that some love affairs grow stronger over time. I gather my purse and as turn off my computer I have an overwhelming feeling of power and fearlessness. I am going out into the world frivolous and impractical!
About the Author
© Gina Schreck is the “Cheerman of the Bored” and she helps people Reconnect with What Matters Most! She is the author of several books, including Inside Out Success: Reconnecting with What Matters Most, and Marriage Mechanics: A Tune Up for the Highway of Love! She speaks to organizations that want to improve relationships from the inside out. To contact Gina, call 303-978-0887 or check out her website at http://www.schrecktalk.com/
|
|
|
|
|
Beauty Guide -- Hairstyles Makeup Nails & Skin |
About.com's guide to beauty, hair & makeup. Learn new trends in hair color & styles, makeup dos & don’ts and waxing vs. shaving. See makeovers, tricks from ... |
beauty.about.com |
  |
Shop at Beauty.com for Make Up, Cosmetics, Skin Care, Hair ... |
Top Selling Prestige Brands - NARS, Too Faced, Vincent Longo, Philosophy, LORAC and much more in Stock. Free Shipping is available. |
www.drugstore.com |
  |
Beauty Tips, Hair Styles and More at iVillage.com |
Find beauty tips, including how to get hot celebrity hairstyles, at iVillage.com. |
beauty.ivillage.com |
  |
American Beauty (1999) |
American Beauty on IMDb: Movies, TV, Celebs, and more... |
www.imdb.com |
  |
Beauty - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia |
The usage of beauty for purposes of commercialism is a controversial aspect of the ... The ideal Roman is the more masculine form of pure male beauty. ... |
en.wikipedia.org |
  |
CSS Beauty | CSS Design, News, Jobs, Community, Web Standards |
CSS Beauty focuses on providing its audience with a database of well designed CSS based sites, as well as news and happenings on the CSS Design Community. |
www.cssbeauty.com |
  |
Dove |
Real Beauty E-cards. Send your loved one a real beauty e-card to tell her how beautiful she really is. send now · countries · privacy policy · terms of use ... |
www.campaignforrealbeauty.com |
  |
Free Beauty Tips And Samples |
Free beauty tips: hair care, skin care, makeup, lips, cosmetics, hairstyles, eyebrows, nails etc. |
www.free-beauty-tips.com |
  |
Beautynet.com - home |
Offering articles and related stories, plus a directory of beauty salons. |
www.beautynet.com |
  |
css Zen Garden: The Beauty in CSS Design |
A demonstration of what can be accomplished visually through CSS-based design. |
www.csszengarden.com |
  |
Beauty |
Information and practical advice to make you even more beautiful. |
www.ivillage.co.uk |
  |
Amazon.com Beauty: Fragrances & perfumes, makeup, skincare ... |
Online shopping for all your favorite brands of beauty products in the Beauty Store, where you'll find the latest in makeup, perfumes & fragrances, ... |
www.amazon.com |
  |
GlobalBeauties.com - Your Portal to a World of Beauty |
Coverage of Miss World, Miss Universe, and Miss International. |
www.globalbeauties.com |
  |
American Beauty |
Official Dreamworks web site. Trailer, reviews, and credits. |
www.dreamworks.com |
  |
Beauty | Seventeen.com |
Beauty Secrets: Readers share tips on how to fix last minute nail disasters and get ... Beauty School: What was your best makeover experience? ... |
www.seventeen.com |
  |
Sally Beauty Co. |
World-wide supplier of beauty salon products and equipment. Corporate information, locations, online catalog. |
www.sallybeauty.com |
  |
Beauty Bar |
html hit counter. |
www.beautybar.com |
  |
BeautyLink |
Your official Gateway to the World of Beauty on the Web. Your FREE Beauty Link membership gives you access to gossip, model & celebrity news, a teen section ... |
www.beautylink.com |
  |
BBC - Slink - Hair & Beauty Bible - A-Z <br><p class="recess ... |
Contains fashion and beauty advice, news, views, and interviews. |
www.bbc.co.uk |
  |
Health and Beauty |
Natural Health and Beauty, review articles on health and beauty, Skin Care, ... Problems with deteriorating facial bones and beauty are more severe in women ... |
www.emaxhealth.com |
  |
|