I recently went to the MVC (Motor Vehicle Commission) to get my REAL ID, and was offered the opportunity to have a new license photo taken. Sure, it’s been a while.
There’s nothing like having your photo taken by some official agency to reveal how we’ve aged, how many more lines we’ve added since our last such photograph. In our mirrors at home, we watch a slow and gradual change, so we can almost delude ourselves into thinking we haven’t really aged. It’s a harmless enough delusion.
Once back home, I decided to take an account of my face in the mirror.
There are definitely some lines. Among them, are many, many laugh lines. I know because when I smile, I see which ones they are. I also have squinting lines on my forehead and between my eyebrows, because I have grey eyes, and lighter eyes are always much more sensitive to sun then darker ones.
Some of the lines are simply natural aging, years of skin no longer capable of being taut as it was when I was younger. Pretty routine. I notice there really aren’t frown lines, or a down turned mouth, nothing angry.
But I also know, hidden in those lines, there are times of pain, anxiety, the stress of overcoming things life brought my way, delicate channels for tears. These lines are, to use the words of a friend, my Badge of Courage.
In the end, whether in a harshly lit photo for a driver’s license, in the soft and generous photo taken by a friend, or a selfie, all these lines are no more, no less, than a life lived.
Still A Dreamer 
What a wonderful way to describe one’s life.
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Thank you. 😊 And to think that it was inspired by a trip to the MVC …
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Thank you for sharing. By the way, those lines are beautiful. We love you and all your lines – true beauty. ❤️❤️❤️
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Ahhhh …. thank you so much. And that love goes right back to you. ❤️❤️❤️
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I love the way you expressed these reflections, Jeanne! My own face, turning 74 this week, has badges of courage and mainly shows a life lived. I’m going to remember this post as being a positive way to look at aging:)
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What a lovely compliment. Thanks, Becky. There is so much criticism on the look of aging in our culture (although it’s better than it once was), but really, it is just the account of all our experiences.
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So true!
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I just renewed my license this week, too! Haven’t seen it yet, since it’s coming by mail, but I agree: our faces tell our story. I think yours is beautiful; hope mine will be, too! ♥️
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This time I went for the REAl ID, since moving about, even within our own country, can now be challenged. Thank you on the photo compliment, but this one is not the license one. This one is a selfie I took here fairly recently. We’ll see how the new license one looks when it arrives, but it looked better on their screen than the previous one.I’m sure you’ll look pretty! 😊
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Hope so. I got the real ID, too. Wanted that and my passport ready in case they get restrictive with voting. 😞
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I’ve been doing the same. Got the passport last April, and finally, this. And like you, in case we’re going to have to deal with some b.s. we shouldn’t have to deal with. So sad and ridiculous.
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