Forever young? … Society and the endless craze for youthfulness
By EveEden
On her return from school, my younger sister narrated how she came across a male local trader at a bus stop in the morning while going to school. According to her, the man bellowed about the wonders of his little cupped concoction for having pink lips. She complained that the trader glorified his product by saying all kinds of words just to lure customers especially females. Sister reported, that he advised that ladies should patronize his product and bid farewell to lipsticks. He also told men to arrest the hearts of their ladies eternally by bleaching their lips pink and channel the fret of losing their lovers to another’s arms into making more money.
In the man’s words: “buy this my product, beautify your pink lips and bring out the super star hidden in your lips”. Sadly, she ended her tale with disgust; scoffing that the man’s lips reminds her of our paternal granny’s kettle in the village that never leaves the fire wood spot. She plausible asked, “How can he be selling such magic for pink lips yet his lips are more than black?” I couldn’t help but snigger.
Her little tale made me to think and realize that in the world of beauty; anything is attainable. We are no longer only burdened with what to eat, clothing and where to sleep. Our needs have revolved. Humans are greatly laden with what or who to look like. Our natural look is inadequate. Nature can no longer confine you to a particular identity. We want to fashion our own looks. I began to recollect all the amusing looks I have seen especially in the market. I have seen elderly women, whom I can’t tell their true complexion. The faces are red with some spray of purple, the hands are fair with vibrant lemon green veins, the legs are dark with fair equally proportioned dot spots and a bright feet with a darkened toe knuckles. Sometimes, it’s just a ‘sun face’ on a ‘moon body’. Every minute there is an avalanche` of cosmetics products churned out by industries with promises that we can look anyway we want. If you will it; you can.
Previously, bleaching creams and many others ‘mushroom cosmetics’ were confined to the street market but these days there are displayed on high-brow supermarkets. Just yesterday, I went to more than one super-mart to replace my body cream; but couldn’t find it. Each time, I inquired about other creams suitable for my shade of fair skin; I was shown on the counter the good ones and also the smart good ones for bleaching. What funny names those creams bear- ‘rapid white, fairer skin, everyday fair, white and fair, whitening instant, glowing tone etc. Little wonder why fair complexioned skin ladies dominate our society when it should be more dark skinned females; at least to remind you and I that we live in the African continent. Lest I forget, men also bleach but ladies are the champions; we are the bleaching skin chairpersons, breaking more records than before.
Likewise, the makeup industry is wining over billions from customers. They have evolved from white powder and lip gloss. These days listing a makeup kit is longer than listing a rich soup ingredient. We assumed we have seen it all with just the eye pencil, brown powder and lip stick; but we were wrong. So many specific products for different wanted look- primers, make up spray, angle brush, concealers, eye shadow primers and what have you. Before concealers and primers, ladies drew their eye brows perfectly and applied their foundation without any fuss. Hell no! Not anymore, we can’t suddenly wear our makeup perfect without all the detailing kits. The male sexes are also interested in makeup, no matter how innocent they may want to look or deny it. They are trailing the ladies; satisfying their beauty crave and indulging.
Equally, some folks are not also satisfied with the size of their sexual parts and go about applying hideous creams or resorting to buying butt and breasts pads. In the local market these sexual enlargement creams are sold by ‘mallams’. I have even visited a shop and feasted my eyes on the products. I looked at those products with spite and even haggled the price but left with a promise to be back. The inscription “for penis enlargement, contact this number 080XXXXXXXX” are chasing us on our road walls, pavements and bridges. I pondered when the rave for enlarged penis occupied the minds of men; that so many specialists are caving in to offer solutions. I don’t know the ideal size length for an average penis; but I feel men are just insatiable with their penis sizes just as women are either with their breasts or buttocks and even both. This is flimsy as it is not the size that matters but functionality. Our predecessors procreated more than I can almost vouch they didn’t have issues with the sizes but appreciated whatever nature blessed them with. Though I have no evidence to confirm, if they were greedy with the sizes and resolved to any herbal or deity means.
These desires are human and welcomed but I don’t appreciate resorting to artificial methods in enhancing whatever size nature destined for you. Why spend so much to have extra flesh on the buttocks when some who are massively blessed with it wish to cut it off and share. Why have restive mind over a pair of buttocks that only does nothing other than to shake, wiggle, jiggle, shit and fart?
No matter what we do, we can’t hide the wrinkles that accompany ageing. It’s a natural call that we must obey unless we plan resorting to the news; if not rumour that an anti-ageing hormone is available by the English people and for them. I know with globalization, we can be partakers of that hormone to keep us everlasting youthful but I can stake on how many Africans can and will buy the idea with our actions and reasoning tangled with religious rhetoric and financial limitations. We may excessively indulge in other youthful look escapades (cosmetics, pads, pills etc) but this one might just be the one we may never embrace.
No matter what we do, we can’t hide the wrinkles that accompany ageing. It’s a natural call that we must obey unless we plan resorting to the news; if not rumour that an anti-ageing hormone is available by the English people and for them.
We have more worrisome issues to chew than to meddle with reversing our human natural process. We are humans; we must physically deteriorate with age. We can only maintain our being to last us longer but not alter it.
We have more worrisome issues to chew than to meddle with reversing our human natural process. We are humans; we must physically deteriorate with age. We can only maintain our being to last us longer but not alter it.
