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The Best Part about Womanhood: Growing from a Fine Young Lady to a Fine Old Lady

This article is written by a student writer from the Her Campus at UCSB chapter.

What is the one thing that all people, especially women, fear the most? Many women would say aging. 

Time passes so quickly that there’s not enough time to enjoy the youth and beauty before everything is gone. Yes, the most scary thing about life is that time does not go back, but why not change our perspective? Maybe “time does not go back” is also the best part about womanhood. 

Beauty can never be defeated by time. 

via google image

At the beginning of 2018, Lancome invited this 66-year-old woman — Isabella Rosellini — to be their new model. This woman certainly does not have the youthful appearance or energetic “attractiveness” of a young lady. Yet her confidence, peacefulness, as well as elegance cannot be hidden at all, and people can’t help praising: she’s so beautiful!

via google image

Before modeling in 2018, she had left the modeling career for more than twenty years, tending her farm. 

She was, however, before becoming a farmer, the most expensive model in the 1980s, modeling for Lancome for 14 years, and was the sweetheart of Hollywood. 

via google image

People loved her for her beauty and elegance. Of course, Isabella was born in a family of celebrities, with her mother being the the Swedish actress Ingrid Bergman who won three academy awards and her father the Italian film director Roberto Rossellini. Isabella’s appearance took after the pride and elegance of her northern European mother as well as the romance and passion of her Italian father. 

via google image

 Once she entered the modeling career and appeared on the cover of Vogue, her profession as a model thrived. 

via google image

Her styles changed so easily as she appeared with different outfits and makeup. How can anyone not fall in love with her beauty?

via Google Images

However, all the success and glory ended when she was 44 years old. The reason was simple: she was too old to be a model anymore. 

Aging and failure were what drove her crazy but also what calmed made her down. She left all the applauds, stages and spotlights she used to enjoy, accepting that fact that she is aging, and rented a farm in the countryside. 

via google image

Returning to where we come from, nature, can always help us find inner peace. Isabella left behind the thought that her career was over. Life is a cycle, just like day and night, just like spring and fall.

Twenty two years later, she was invited again to be a model. This time, however, she is not admired simply for her beauty and elegance, but also for her strength of being a woman who accepts aging confidently. 

via google image

Well, surrounded by a group of young models, no one can ever say that the 66-year-old Isabella is any less beautiful than those around her. 

The power of aging women is not only demonstrated by a previous professional model such as Isabella, but also a group of Russian women who weren’t professional models at all. 

via google image

The Russian young man in the middle started his profession as a photographer by taking photos for elder people above age 60. After seeing some photos he took for the “grandmas and grandpas,” the world was shocked by how beautiful they were at their age. Why should we only enjoy the beauty of youth? The beauty of aging is just as natural and awesome.  via google image

While youth contains the natural beauty and energy of a fine young lady, it takes more effort to preserve this beauty and vibrancy after so many years of struggles and difficulties in life, even if the youthful body and appearance no longer exist. 

via google image

Growing from a fine young lady to a fine old lady is arguably the best part about being a woman. 

A second-year communication and global studies double major at UCSB because, coming from Beijing, I believe both the ability to communicate well and to possess a global cross-cultural sensitivity are significant for a international student like me who is determining to make the world a better place by contributing my tiny efforts. I am an artistic poet who enjoys music, fashion, yoga, jogging, golf, traveling, journaling, and has Chinese poem published on the UCSB multilingual "Vagabond journal" 2017 edition.
Hi, Collegiettes! I'm Carmen, a Communication major at University of California, Santa Barbara and one of two Campus Correspondents for UCSB. I would love to one day work in either fashion, food, tech, financial services or philanthropy. My dream is to find a job that somehow combines several of those elements. Until I get there, I'll be munching on copious amounts of Trader Joe's dried mango, jamming out to my man, Frank Sinatra, and focusing on creating intriguing content! If you like my writing, talk to me. ;)