“Okay? Well, I’ve never heard that one before. That was rather delightfully peculiar. Well, at least, it’s original. Uhm…thank you, I suppose.”
The preceding words were my initial reaction to a compliment one of my close friends, Charlie, told me. Those said kind words from him were so unexpected, so different that I was left rather bemused and having to digest the words for a few minutes or so. Let’s just say you probably won’t expect this quip about beauty said very often. So, just what did he tell me?
“Alexis, you have very lovely eyebrows.”
Eyebrows? Oh really now? You like my….beg your pardon? Well, that’s very unique.
But then again, those original words coming from Char's mouth is something to be rather expected, he being, well, original. One thing I've noticed about my wonderful soul brother is his innate creativity, especially when it comes to word play. He, being Mr. Literateur with the Expansive Vocabulary, always gives out such fresh ideas and quips, so fresh it makes you wonder why you never thought of them. The word "limited" is not applicable to him and his imagination. And yeah, it's one of the things I admire about mon frère âme. Probably, Charlie’s the only one daring enough to ever think of relating the words “lovely” and “eyebrow” and slap them into the same sentence.
But still, who compliments people on the strip of hair above their peepers, anyway?
Not to sound like I’m tooting my own horn, but I know that there are other physical features he could have commented on. I’ve been getting lovely words on my big, deeply-set Indian eyes since childhood. Ever since I got rid of the orthodontia, I’ve been hearing about how brilliant my smile is. Pretty recently, thanks to the salon miracle called hair rebonding, I’ve been receiving quips about how fabulous I look with straight hair. These are normal features to compliment on. So yes, it makes me wonder why his focus was on the eyebrows.
Oh well! At least, he has a private, Charlie thing that’s unique and endearing about him. And yes, it’s still a compliment.
Wait! Who says Charlie's wrong to notice my eyebrows? Who says eyebrows can’t be deemed beautiful? Who says that that strip of hair is limited to just that --- another strip of hair? Who says it can’t be a subject of compliments much like your eyes or smile? Who says eyebrows can’t be appreciated?
It’s pretty much the same with people, really. There is beauty apart from your usual Cosmopolitan cover queen or that Miss Universe winner. Who says you kitchen help should always be relegated to the background? Who says that lady guard who keeps checking you for identification couldn’t be considered beautiful? Most of all, who says you, yes you, aren’t lovely?
Everyone and everything has beauty in them. It’s just a matter of seeing and appreciating that blossom in each of us. It may not be the usual Angelina Jolie/Scarlett Johannson/ insert-it-girl-here kind of look that lands you magazine covers, but that isn’t the sole marker of beauty, is it? Beauty comes in all shades, shapes, sizes, and packages.
Now, if you excuse me, my apparently lovely, shapely brows need to be tweezed.
PS: Charlie, huge thanks for allowing me to use you as the relational subject of my post! If you find anything here you find hurtful, please feel free to tell me, okay?
And yes, continue to be creatively inspiring!
