Reflection

As I sit here waiting with for my Dead Sea Mask to dry on my face (while it burns like crazy), it really makes me think of our lesson last night. We discussed our issues with appearance, how we judge, and how we are judged. We shared stories with our experiences, compared favorite beauty products and why we use them, and compared our beauty treatments today with those that Esther had to endure. As a female in her mid-20's, I have to say appearance is one of the most popular subjects no matter who you talk to or what you are doing. As much as we'd like to avoid it and deny it, the thing is that we give in to what society's view of the perfect appearance is. We wear makeup, use treatments, masks and lotions on our face, we dye our hair, we starve ourselves, and dress the way the magazines say so, just to fit in. Who are you really trying to please? Is all that work for someone else (like the story of Esther) or for yourself? If you are constantly having to worry about looking the right way are you really and truly doing something to make yourself happy? Don't get me wrong - don't eat all day long because you're bored or avoid the shower to make a stand against "beauty", but be content with who you are, how you are. If there are things to work on, exercise your fruit of the spirit called patience, and work on it in a healthy, happy way. Gradual steps to cutting portions and adding moderate exercises are better than starving yourself for 2 weeks, losing your energy, and hearing your tummy rumble. Taking your makeup off and moisturizing in a daily routine are more effective than an automatic face lift or a Botox treatment.

People always say that first impressions are everything. It is better to leave an impression of what's in your heart than to leave an impression of a face that took an hour and half to prepare and is forgettable. Using context clues in the Bible, we can infer that Esther won over Hegai with her personality - not entirely her looks. We have to have more substance to ourselves than a thin veneer on the outside.

While on BBC.com, I came across an article that gave scientific explanations for why faces are easier to remember than names.

"In other words, faces are given to us – they are there when we look at the person we are thinking about – and all we have to do is know whether we have seen them before or not. Names, on the other hand, are hidden in memory and we have to retrieve them, which is a far harder psychological task."

If we put this in perspective, we need to give additional information to other that we come across that will stand out in addition to our face. Will you be remembered for your manners and sweet disposition or will you be remembered for being harsh, angry and upset all the time? Both are extremes, but both are easily remembered. If you are watching any type of TV show involving a competition, you are going to see personalities come out. You are either going to notice those who are ruthless and will do anything to win, or those who honestly have a respect for others and know how to play the game. Those that are in-between rarely stand out.

Which way will you be remembered? Would you have won over not only Hegai, but also the King, with more than your looks? It was stated that Esther was liked by everyone - men AND women. As a woman, I can say that I am MUCH more judgmental of women than of men, and a woman generally has to show some kind of substance before I can respect them. Imagine being in a room full of drop dead gorgeous women who were fighting for one man. I don't think many of those women would have thought twice about getting to know each other, let alone respecting one another. We always think that men focus more on our appearance, but according to our discussion last night, we as women notice more about other women. We pick them apart piece by piece.

Now you have a few things to think about. I ended up having more to say than I thought. My mask is now dried, crinkled, and I can't move my face. I've been typing for at least 20 minutes...

I hope you all enjoy your week and are keeping one another in your prayers.