Last week, Betty White turned 97 and everyone was celebrating. To me, she seems to be very authentic, says what she is thinking (seems to always have been this way) and presents herself at her best. And she is still photographed all the time, not worrying about how to get rid of her wrinkles so "she looks great for the paparazzi”.

As we age, we start looking for more things about ourselves to be unhappy with. We start to notice the products that will firm up, reduce puffiness, erase lines, tighten skin, wipe away wrinkles, etc, etc, etc. We are on an eternal search for that miracle potion that will restore & transform us with the claim:

You. Will. Look. Younger.

The last time I checked, the Fountain of Youth exists only in science fiction. But I do believe that age is just a state of mind.

Of course, most of us will always worry about how we look. But when I’m 80, I hope that younger women will look at me and see the lines in my forehead and understand that I have had thoughts grand and grandiose. I’d like them to notice the lines around my eyes and know that I have seen many things, many which have made me laugh. I’d like them to understand that each wrinkle around my mouth represents a story that only I can tell.

These stories make our lives special, and it saddens me that one of the first requests from my clients is to Photoshop away their wrinkles. We have earned every one of them and aren’t we lucky to still be here to tell the tales that go with them!

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