The Ultimate Beautifier

I started to shop at this particular makeup counter in my last year of high school.
I learned from someone wiser than me that a woman has to moisturize her skin.
Many girls my age thought that moisturizing was something they would do much later.
I started all those years ago and have never stopped.

I have been using the same moisturizer for almost forty years.
It is my morning and bedtime ritual.
Wash my face and then moisturize has been my daily routine.
As I got older, I decided to use a little eye cream as well.

One eye cream was suggested to me at the store I usually frequent.
I tried it and really liked it.
Now my routine became wash my face, moisturize, and apply a dab of eye cream.
I noticed the tube of eye cream was getting low.

I went back to the makeup counter and purchased another one.
I try to always have an extra products in the cabinet under my dressing table.
Before my second tube of eye cream got too low, I decided to buy a spare.
That was when I discovered they did not have any more at the makeup counter.

It should be coming in soon, said the woman behind the counter who usually waits on me.
She checked her large binder to see if the product was discontinued.
It is not on my discontinued product list, she added.
She was not sure when the eye cream would be restocked.

There is another store in my local mall that has the same makeup counter so I decided to go there.
The woman behind the counter recognized me from the few times I have purchased things.
I told her that I wanted to buy a tube of my eye cream.
I brought the flattened box with me to make sure I was getting the right product.

Oh, that eye cream is discontinued, she said quickly.
Besides, that is an anti-aging product, she said.
Since you have a mature eye, you need eye repair, she said in no uncertain terms.
I know that this woman is close to my age but her sales tactic was less than stellar.

I know that I am 57 years old.
I know that my hair is gray.
I know that lines are carving memories in my face.
I know that I am considered mature.

However, something about the way she said it bothered me.
It was as if anti-aging products cannot be used once you start to age.
It was as if Repair-wear, which is what the product she suggested is called, is all I can use.
I was annoyed and had to check my heart to see why her comment bothered me so much.

It was as if there is a boundary line that I suddenly crossed.
It was as if I was thrust into mature skin territory.
It was as if I reached the point of no return.
It was as if I did not know my own skin and what it needed.

My other store, recommended this eye cream, I said showing her my flattened box.
Well they are not trained, she said with an attitude.
This eye cream has an SPF 20 and I like that, I added.
But it is not for mature skin, she said again.

I bought the product she suggested, against my own better judgment.
I used it for one week.
I found that her product made my eyes sting.
My eyes were sensitive to something in the eye cream.

I took the Repair-wear she suggested back to the counter.
This company stands behind their products.
The woman saw me coming.
What’s wrong? She asked.

I explained how the eye cream was making my eyes sting.
She reluctantly began to issue a credit to my charge card.
I just got in, she said, and now this return puts me in negative sales, she said annoyed.
As she was pushing all the correct buttons on her cash register to issue my credit, she looked up.

I’m OK, she said relieved.
See that woman over there; she will give me a nice sale to make up for your return.
I could not believe what I was hearing.
At this makeup counter, at this particular store, the customer was simply a bottom line.

I began to see the subtle sales technique of using key words to change a customer’s mind.
I began to see how the buttons on the cash register were not the only ones being pushed.
I was quite annoyed.
I will only shop at my regular makeup counter from now on.

Anti-age.
Repair-wear.
Mature skin.
Mature eyes.

I hope so.
How I hope so.
I hope that my well over fifty years of wisdom and life experience shows on my face.
I hope that every line tells a story; a wonderful story of a life well lived.

Not well lived because of any materiel success.
Not well lived because of any recognition.
Rather, well lived because of investing in my family and other people.
Well lived because I lived my life for Him.

Therefore, we do not lose heart. Though outwardly we are wasting away, yet inwardly we are being renewed day by day. For our light and momentary troubles are achieving for us an eternal glory that far outweighs them all. So we fix our eyes not on what is seen, but on what is unseen. For what is seen is temporary, but what is unseen is eternal. (2 Corinthians 4:16-18)

A life well lived for Christ is the goal.
It is not about wrinkles and gray hair.
It is not about the way our bodies change as we get older.
It is about the renewal that is happening inside us all to His glory.

There is no eye cream for that.
There is no moisturizer than can guarantee that renewal.
Those who look to Him are radiant; their faces are never covered with shame. (Psalm 34:5)
Turning our faces towards Him is the ultimate beautifier.

2 responses to “The Ultimate Beautifier”

1. Liked that lines are “carving memories in my face” or laugh lines also lets me know that so much good has happened, especially one of life’s greatest gifts…grandchildren

   Reply

   • Kaye,
     Our faces tell a story. If we try to cover up those memory lines, how will the world know our story? Our life story is to be told to glorify Him. Enjoy your precious grandchildren.
     Gina

     Reply