Oh how lovely it would be to be one of the lucky ones to soak up the sun's rays for hours upon hours without worry of the punishing sunburn. Born with pale skin speckled with freckles, I've will never enjoy that kind of freedom. Buckets full of sunscreen, big sunglasses, and a wide-rimmed floppy hat are a must before I can even so much as think about placing a toe in the sand on a hot summer day. It's annoying, frustrating and just plain scary.
Skin cancer is no joke. Melanoma took my father's life before he could blow out the candles on his thirtieth birthday cake. I didn't know him, so I don't know exactly how he ended up in that incredibly devastating situation. But given the time of his youth, I'm guessing he spent countless hours in the sun without knowing how to, or even that he should, protect himself from those intense rays.
That was a different time. I cringe when my mom tells stories about laying out with her friends in the sun slathered from head to toe in baby oil. If she discovered I was doing something as inane as that today, she'd have to talk herself out of banging my head against the wall to knock some sense into it. I'd let her have at it though. Even though it would be hypocritical, she would be right. She and my father grew up in a different time. I know better.
We all know better today. We are well aware of the risky combination of the big, beautiful sun and our bodies. It's no secret today that everyone must coat themselves in SPF to protect their health. Why then are the rates of skin cancer on the incline, especially among women in their 20s and 30s?
Experts at the Mayo Clinic predict that one of the culprits is indoor tanning bed use.
Indoor tanning bed use?! Oh my. That is much sillier than just forgetting to reapply the sunscreen. Using a tanning bed is synonymous with laying your beach towel out on the blazing sun itself. Skip the tan and go right to the coffin.
That is harsh. I know. But maybe that big dose of that fear will help us all to throw away the obnoxious idea that a year-round, glowing tan is a prerequisite for being beautiful. Maybe we need it to finally have the courage to say it just isn't worth it anymore.
Muster up that courage sisters and say fuck you to patriarchy's unhealthy beauty ideals. Throw your money at the sunscreen companies and let the tanning salon go bankrupt.
Live long enough to blow out well more than thirty candles on your birthday.
No comments:
Post a Comment
Thank you for becoming a part of the conversation. All comments are moderated prior to posting (see Comments Policy). Check back soon to see your posted comment.