Waterproof Mascara
Birthdays—How do you feel about them?
A day meant for celebration. A day to celebrate making it through another year, a day to celebrate growing “wiser.”
Don’t mind my need to read between the lines, my need to dissect a situation.
But some birthday girls are nervous behind their birthday tiara—behind their perfectly blended birthday makeup they spent weeks planning. They find themselves wishing they would have worn waterproof mascara.
Nervous about growing older, worried if everyone else is having fun. Stressed about the mess they are making, scared that their downstairs neighbors are secretly plotting against them.
Image Courtesy: Haleigh Grose
Hot girls always cry on their birthdays—a common way to write off letting a few tears flow on your special day. For some, letting a few droplets slip may just be a symptom of their perfectionism, but for others the diagnosis may be a little deeper down.
When these melancholy emotions swell up inside of us on our big day, are we really dragging our baggage into the next year or are we just putting too much pressure on the day?
I think we can all agree that we secretly put too much pressure on the day.
August 29th, right at the start of Virgo season, my birthday. And in true Virgo fashion, I love to host. I love to gather all my friends together.
Like many others, my birthday tends to be a more stressful time. I love the idea of my birthday, but the execution always proves to be more of an overwhelming ordeal. I’ve even found myself clinging to the justification of it not truly being a birthday if you don’t have to wipe your cheekbones dry.
Image Courtesy: Haleigh Grose
But why do so many find themselves needing waterproof mascara? Are you actually annoyed at your friends or are you horrified that it is the first day in your whole life that you are not a teenager? Do you not like your makeup or are you one year closer to ‘growing out’ of your hostess job?
The pressure to be grown up at a young age, along with the same amount of pressure to not grow old and show signs of aging.
There are boundaries in society that one cannot cross—things that you don’t do. You don’t point at others. You don’t ask someone if they are pregnant. You don’t ask a woman’s age.
Why can’t we ask her age? Does this innocent guideline uncover a deeper systemic problem? Are women scared to age?
In a world full of unknowns, entering another year still, not knowing, can be scary. It is easy to get caught up in the unknown or the uncontrollable. It is normal for a birthday to bring up those thoughts.
Image Courtesy: Haleigh Grose
But your birthday is your day. How can we end this cycle of birthday dissatisfaction? There are a few approaches you can take. And forgive me if you don’t think you need advice on this, I mean, I am a Virgo.
You could-- bulldoze the whole issue. This year will be my year. This party will be perfect. All my friends will show up and be engaged. I will have the perfect birthday outfit.
Where this solution could go wrong is that you could end up right back where you were the year before, with your expectations squashed and wishing you had worn waterproof mascara.
You could-- ignore the problem. Just forget that the birthday blubber is even part of your big day routine. Just have fun and party with your friends.
In my experience, burying issues is never a great idea. They could always come back ten times worse... Some inexperienced self-gaslighters might even try to numb the pain too much, making it really come back...
OK, so a more rational idea, you could reflect on the years past. Do some serious soul searching. Figure out the root of the issue. What caused this each year?
While this sounds like a no-brainer, it may be easier said than done. Some people may be able to conquer this approach and I applaud you if you have.
The most reasonable and rational thing we can do is not let the fear of the unknown and the uncontrollable consume us. Don’t let a minor speed bump ruin your day. This is your day, your time to shine. Making it through another year is something to celebrate. So, slap on some waterproof mascara and kick some birthday ass.
Strike Out,
Orlando
Author: Reanna Haase
Reanna Haase is a content writer and copy editor for Strike Magazine Orlando. She is a virgo sun with a libra moon so her social battery is always confused. She is also both a leopard gecko and cat mom. You can reach her at reannah@knights.ucf.edu or on instagram @reannahaase.
