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I can’t STAND the expression “age gracefully”

How about we age however the hell we want?

Kate F
Generate Magic
5 min readMay 31, 2023

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Image by Midnight Believer on Flickr

I knew it would come one day, but I was still a little…surprised…when I spotted my first gray hairs.

At first, I thought maybe my hair was discolored from the dry shampoo I’d been using, or from the sun. Surely, I had another ten years, at least?

But after a bit of research, I discovered that this was quite normal for my age range, especially considering my hair type.

I guess blonds don’t necessarily have more fun.

Now, this didn’t turn into some sort of existential crisis. I got on with my day and my life.

Then, I was recently perusing the comments section of an article on—you guessed it, the aging process—and a woman said that she had been dying her gray hair, and she seemed to express some shame that she couldn’t just accept her gray hair and “age gracefully.”

What?!!

Now, my reaction is in no way targeted toward this woman—I’m no stranger to these kinds of thoughts—but arises from the fact that we live in a world where even a simple personal choice like dying your hair could be subject to scrutiny.

I’m not sure of the original meaning of the expression “age gracefully”—I looked it up and…

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Generate Magic
Generate Magic

Published in Generate Magic

By sharing my most personal, sometimes humiliating moments, I help you find humor in your pain and use your challenges to enhance your self-knowledge and empathy so you can feel less alone on your hero’s journey. Let’s celebrate ALL the emotions.

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