Shy Pink, Wet and Wild #503, Berry Kiss, Honey Gloss, Desert Sand, Iced Cappuccino, and Mystic Mauve are all names of lipstick colors I have worn from college up to the present time. I loved each and everyone of those colors during each "lipstick phase" of my life. It's so easy for me to become comfortable with a color that I am using. I know which color to look for at the store and will habitually buy it. Then one day I will be casually searching at the makeup counter for my lipstick and POOF! My lipstick color is gone, no where to be found.....discontinued! I frantically go to other makeup counters to see if I can find it but it is nowhere. Anger rises in me and I ask the question I have asked many times over the years, why did they stop making MY color? I loved that color! It was perfect for my skin tone, looked great on me and I was comfortable with it. I knew what to use and didn't have to wonder and experiment every morning with what to put on my lips.
With the unexpected cancellation of my lipstick colors I have been forced to change many times and I must say, it's not usually a comfortable change for me. I try desperately to find a new tube of lipstick that is just like my old one. The color, the texture, the shine and shimmer and the moisturizing factors all must be taken into account. I find my self buying numerous new lipsticks and experimenting with the tones in hopes of replicating the old favorite. It usually never happens. Sadly I have learned that I can't replace my old lipstick but must accept the change of a new color, brand and formula. I must have an open mind and embrace the opportunity for change, even if I'm not quite ready for it. When I can finally accept the change and work to make my new lipstick color fit into my makeup routine I become comfortable again and content. I stretch out of my comfort zone and can realize that it was time to move on, that the new color works for me too in a new phase of life.
How many times in life are we forced to change whether it be a new home, new job, new relationship, new school, new health issues, new friends or even being forced to leave a situation we have been comfortable with. We put up a fight and it's really hard. We often raise our hands in the air and ask, "Why me?" I've come to realize in my "mature" age of life that all of these unforeseen changes have the potential to bring us growth and can help us become better, stronger people along our journey. These changes may feel disruptive and unwelcome to us at the time but as we experiment and try new things, we can become comfortable again and be able to accept the new "color" or change in our lives.
Yes, there is pain and discomfort in change but there is also satisfaction when you recognize the progress you have made. Life is full of hills and valleys...the best growth comes when we are in the valleys. I love this message written by C.S Lewis when he writes about imagining ourselves as a living house. He says, "God comes in to rebuild that house. At first, perhaps, you can understand what He is doing. He is getting the drains right and stopping the leaks in the roof and so on: you knew those jobs needed doing and so you are not surprised. But presently he starts knocking the house about in a way that hurts abominably and does not seem to make sense. What on earth is He up to? The explanation is that He is building quite a different house from the one you thought of—throwing out a new wing here, putting on an extra floor there, running up towers, making courtyards. You thought you were going to be made into a decent little cottage: but He is building a palace.”
Recently I have been forced again to change my lipstick color as Mystic Mauve is no longer on the shelves. As aggravating as it is to start the "right color" hunt again I know it will be alright. I will move forward, find a new color, adjust, and recognize that change is good. It'll be OK.
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