Beauty This & That

“The fair maid who, the first of May,

Goes to the fields at break of day,

And washes in dew from the hawthorn tree,

Will ever after handsome be.”

This is an old charm, still used, for maintaining one's beauty. I thought this was appropriate for this post for a few reasons; May is almost here and I am very close to graduating from beauty school. I just passed my final exam (100!!!) and have about 140 hours left to go. 

Another reason for the beauty charm theme, I attended the esthetics show in Miami a couple of weeks ago and it was VERY inspiring, making me want to get back to work as an esthetician ( I have had that license for ten years) - doing facials and body treatments. I am considering joining a friend who is a massage therapist in opening a little salon for skin and healing with the hope of eventually adding a chair for hair. We would also include lovely products, including those of a metaphysical nature. With the economy the way it is, it remains to be seen whether or not we will be able to do this. In the mean time I am playing with my Eminence line of skin care products - these are TRULY divine!!! The scent, the results - heavenly, enchanting! I am also playing with Bella Schneider's Christina line - Bella's presentation was also very inspiring; it was the first program I attended and it set the right mood for the rest of the show.

You may wonder (or not) why a Dianic witch would even care about this stuff - how does it fit in with a feminist philosophy? Shouldn't I be encouraging women to give up make-up, forget the pursuit of beauty and eat chocolate? Absolutely not - unless that's what they want to do. This is all about caring for one's self with lovely blessings - be it relaxing music, encouraging words, a healing, soothing facial or just pampering one's self at home. It's about giving yourself a treat, a lovely gift and doing those things that make you feel good - just for you. This could be as simple as a couple of cooled chamomile tea bag resting on the eyes and listening to some relaxing music. These simple pleasures make us feel good - not for a man, not for competition with other women, but for ourselves. 

Of course most beauty charms were used to "capture" a husband, but so what? Let's be very Dianic and reclaim beauty and pampering for ourselves. We are not only worth it, we deserve it!

To Keep Beauty From Fading

When all your face appears most fair,

When comets and meteors gild your hair,

And in your eyes the moon and sun,

Contest, surrender, and burn as one,

When ivory Venus smoothes your brow,

And Mars recurves your lips' red bow,

Make haste to utter this binding verse

And hold the stars on their kindest course:

Figures of fire

That shift and change,

Planets that move

By heaven's hinge,

Be signed and fixed

Forever here,

And close my image

Within thy sphere.

Measure a yard of golden string,

Loose from your fingers let it swing,

Then tie it in thirteen sturdy knots -

Hide it among your scents and pots.

- Valerie Worth, The Crone's Book of Words -

Blessings nine!

Images courtesy of The Graphics Fairy
http://graphicsfairy.blogspot.com