A new soul meets the day
When a little baby is born
Face contorted, still unsure
From mother’s womb he’s torn
Toddler’s chubby cheeks
Irresistibly beg for a kiss
Smooth, soft and round
So ignorant, full of joy and bliss
Then tooth is gone, covered in sand,
A new phase comes rushing in
Puberty soon wins the battle
With disfiguring acne on her chin
Beard grows, voice drops
Body develops into woman, into man
Goodbye innocence, bye games
Intriguing character is at hand
Then adulthood sets in and stays
Fine lines are drawn onto your face
Wrinkles of laughter, wrinkles of worries
Fun, love, sadness, sometimes disgrace
Lines, silent witnesses of emotions
Gathered as trophies for the win
You can try to rub them, fill them up
But never from within…
This is a photo of Jane Goodall, who started her daring chimpanzee research on July 14th, 1960 in Gombe, Tanzania. And this beautiful woman has had a full and interesting life, a woman who chose to fight for her beliefs.
Do the lines on her face bother you? I think they’re magnificent!
Each line is telling a different story about challenges, self sacrifice and victory, of sadness and ecstatic joy. About daily worries and quiet happiness. Despair, loneliness, boredom and passion. Lines of expressiveness, a face that is never still.
Why are we trying so hard to get rid of those lines, when every single one is part of who we are, who we have become through the years? Let’s be proud of the way a lifetime of emotions has shaped our face.
Lines, respected jewels… no curse!
Marion, Jane Goodall is one of my heroes in life. As you say – beautiful in every way. Lovely poem. And I loved my grandmother’s face, and now my mother’s. My own lines do not bother me at all.
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A wonderful comment, Ann-Christine. Both modest and fierce in her defence of nature, Jane Goodall is an inspiration.
And I’m glad your lines don’t bother you, they are what makes us us!
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I absolutely agree! I remember looking at my grandmother’s face and thinking how beautiful she was. Lines are the map of our character. I always expect to like people with crow’s feet at the corners of their eyes. My grandmother called those “laugh wrinkles”. 🙂
Marian Allen
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Laugh wrinkles, how can anyone need to get rid of something called ‘laugh wrinkles’. Laughing means happiness, and we all want to be happy right?
Thanks so much for your comment Marian, and nice to meet you! 🙂
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