Clouds of Sils Maria

The ageing cycle begins the second we draw our first breath out of the mother's womb. The promise of ageing, illness and death is already set in motion whether we like it or not. We grow, change, and evolve constantly without paying much attention to the process and in the blink of an eye, decades flew by and we no longer enjoy looking into the mirror, seeing a stranger looming in the reflection who is no longer attractive and pretty, at least nothing like what we remember the way we were in our prime years.

I watched the DVD 'Clouds of Sils Maria' the other day and I couldn't help but resonated with the protagonist Maria Enders played by Juliette Binoche. Asked to play a role in a play which brought her fame 20 years ago, only in a character as a much older woman, Maria came to face head on her gremlin, an unsettling reflection of herself as the boss who ended up killing herself in the play. I can see myself as Maria, reluctant to accept the harsh reality of life, a torment which is only too much to bear especially when a much younger actress was chosen to play her old role as the alluring young girl in juxtaposition.

Why is it so heartbreaking to accept ageing which is part of the natural landscape of life? People have been trying to 'preserve' themselves with botox and plastic surgery, fighting against the onslaught of this ugly predicament so called ageing. The beauty industry has never been more prolific when million of dollars are raked from those who refuse to look 'less than', believing that there is indeed a secret to the fountain of youth if they are willing to pay. It has taken me years to make peace with my ageing mind and body. And that is totally liberating!

Fighting against ageing is just futile. Get real. Time is marching forward regardless. We don't think the same way we did 20 years ago as we are now much wiser and know better. The machine which we called our bodies are wearing out at different pace and no amount of exercise or quality food is going to reverse or stop that process of declining. Yet it is not true that life goes out at 40 or 50 and beyond, as long as you make adjustments and make new choices. Instead of showing off everything only being youthful can offer, I can now look at myself in the unforgiving mirror and be proud of myself for who I am,  expressing my values, personality and point of view without a care. It is a presence larger than life and it is ageless. 

There is no point picking on ourselves, digging up old wounds and comparing ourselves to false ideals (which are never true in the first place). My suggestion is to honor yourself for becoming the woman you are at this point in time. This is probably the best age-defying mechanism you can get (and for free too).