Self-Image

So much of our self-worth comes from our perception of other people's opinions of us.

I don't know if this is a natural tendency or something ingrained in us since childhood.

Wouldn't it be so great if we could live life free of self-conciousness and just accept eachother based on personalities and opinions?

I wonder if we could raise children in this world teaching them not to use or be affected by physical judgement?

The Homely Suicides

Peer opinion of us shouldn't really matter in the large perspective of things.

shouldn't. but it does.

The way we act, dress, and think is regulated by how we will be viewed and treated.

it is easily seen in children and teens- who MUST have the same style of clothes and hair as the other kids at school. if someone is too different, they are ostracized and ridiculed, abused or just plain ignored.

every once in awhile we hear of some kid who freaks out and pulls a gun on their classmates. teenagers have breakdowns. self-abuse and even suicide attempts occur every day. ask any high-school counsellor.

we'd like to think that we outgrow this stage, become more accepting and charitable to others.
do we?

do we stop caring about fitting in when we reach for our diploma?

How many of you cried because you weren't popular enough at school, or because someone said you were fat or ugly?

How many of you still cry because the world just doesn't smile on you? because you're tired of reaching for that unattainable goal of acceptance?

is your life only worth what other people think? would you snuff it out because it's too hard to face society?

we are each given a measured time in this world- the things we are meant to do and the people we are meant to effect we spend much of it figuring out.

at the end of the journey, will it really matter that some idiot in preschool said you had a big nose? that your girlfriend left you for a cuter guy? that you didn't get the job because you 'weren't the image we're looking for'?

is it worth it?

what do you think?

Anthony & Cleopatra

sympatico.MSN.ca

Cleopatra, Mark Antony no beauties, coin shows
14/02/2007 10:56:46 AM

Mark Antony and Cleopatra - one of history's most famous romantic couples - were not the beauties immortalized in prose and portrayed in film, according to a 2,000-year-old coin bearing their likenesses.
(Scott Heppell/Associated Press) "

The image of Cleopatra is on one side of the silver denarius, dated to 32BC, being displayed at England's Newcastle University.(Scott Heppell/Associated Press)

Academics at Britain's Newcastle University studying the Roman denarius coin say the Roman politician and Egyptian queen bore little resemblance to Richard Burton and Elizabeth Taylor, the actors who portrayed them in the 1963 film Cleopatra.

"The image on the coin is far from being that of Elizabeth Taylor and Richard Burton," said Lindsay Allason-Jones, director of archeological museums at the university, recalling the film that ignited the tempestuous romance between the two stars.

According to the likenesses on opposite sides of the coin, Mark Antony had bulging eyes, a thick neck and a hooked nose, while Cleopatra had a sharp nose, a chin pointing upwards and thin lips.

It's not the first time images of Cleopatra have turned up showing a less-than-flattering version of the famous Egyptian queen.

But the public perception of her as a physically attractive woman has in part endured because of her legendary charisma.

As the Roman writer Plutarch wrote, "her actual beauty, it is said, was not in itself so remarkable that none could be compared with her."
"But the contact of her presence, if you lived with her, was irresistible; the attraction of her person, joining with the charm of her conversation and the character that attended all she said or did, was something bewitching."

Allason-Jones concurs, saying the image of Cleopatra as a seductress is a more recent image.
"Roman writers tell us that Cleopatra was intelligent and charismatic, and that she had a seductive voice but, tellingly, they do not mention her beauty," she told the BBC.

The coin from 32 BC would have been issued by the mint of Mark Antony. It went public on display Wednesday at the university's Shefton Museum.
With files from the Associated Press

© 2007 Bell Canada, Microsoft Corporation and/or their contributors. All rights reserved.

What do you think?

Does What's 'Inside' Really Count?

So, we've all heard the saying "it's what's inside that counts"(probably from our mothers), and it would be a pretty idyllic society if this were true. If only people saw through whatever outer shell someone had and got to know them for their character, personality, experiences, hopes, dreams, values, etc. Then it wouldn't matter if someone were fat, bald, had a big wart on their nose...

But how long does it take us having contact with someone to even start to look deeper? 'First impressions', and resulting first judgements, really seem to stick with us.

I've heard of a trend called "Dating in the dark"- you get to know someone through conversation first, and then if you are both still interested, with the lights on. Of course, there's also "speed-dating", where it's pretty much what you see and can gather from a 5-minute conversation that are the only hints before you choose who you like enough to see again.
I wonder which is more popular?

So many people, though they might have gotten together because of shallow reasons, stay together because of shared experiences, troubles weathered, and after getting to know what really makes the other tick.
Looks eventually fade, "assets" get saggy, hair thins...

What do you think?

Symmetry

Have you ever heard the saying 'Easy on the eyes'- that's I think pretty much what our brains see as attractive- symmetry, smooth lines, things that don't overload our brains and senses. They are actually easier for us to take in and process.

So, did God make us this way for a reason? Is it really a kind of 'natural selection'- the 'good looking' people couple up and the 'unattractive' people just die alone, without reproducing children with similar flaws?

Coming from a Christian perspecive, I find this very confusing. Don't we all have equal worth? Doesn't everyone deserve to be happy and loved?

What do you think?

Beauty and The Geek

Okay, some of you have seen this show- model-like women (I think that one of them is a playboy bunny), paired up with a 'nerd'- trekkers, scientists, guys who haven't had a date in... ever. They live in a house together and need to team up and learn about eachother, then compete with the others as pairs are eliminated.

Now, though they pass them off as 'geeks' and 'ditzes', appearances can be deceiving. Some of these girls are really smart, and some of the guys great at socializing.

The other night the guys were 'made-over' and auctioned off by their partners as sexy hunks. The winners who 'bought' them were taken to a bar to get to know eachother.

So, were these guys 'worth' more when they looked like models? They seemed to get higher bids, and their female counterparts sure cheered when they saw their new and 'improved' looks.

What do you think?

What You See Around You

So, you wake up in the morning, you go on your way to school, work, errands, whatever. You may smile at those around you or keep to yourself. You think of many things during the day, you see many people, places, objects, but what are you really seeing? Does the world look friendly or scary to you? Do you ponder the beauty of a flower, or feel anger that they aren't as nice as your neighbour's? Do you feel glad for happy families, or wonder why those parents don't keep their children quiet?
When you get home, end your day and lie in bed, alone with your thoughts, are you feeling a positivity, peace, and tranquility, or rage, hatred, and negativity? Either way, what makes you feel that way? What is it that directs our inner eye, thoughts, and feelings?

What do you think?