Back home, I am a girly girl wearing heels and dresses and makeup, the whole nine yards... a Southern Belle has to live up to that you know ;)
Or does she?
NOT in the deep, deep south that is Samoa.
The women here are beautiful - naturally.
Hardly anyone wears make-up or dyes their hair (and certainly not in an unnatural rainbow shade like can be found back in the states). Plus, there are not really hairstyles; the women just have long hair which is often pulled up or braided. Because of the heat, it is unusual for the women to wear their hair "hanging down" as they say :)
Also, fashion is not huge here since they don't have a ton of outside influences or money or even places to purchase new clothes. As a result, when they wear their clothes, they do not necessarily have to match and because of the importance of modesty here, the clothes are very loose and have little shape to them.
So, what has the Southern Belle been looking like here in Samoa...?
Well, like the saying "When in Rome, do as the Romans do," I have begun to say, "When in Samoa..."
But, it didn't start out that I was doing as the Samoans do!
I packed some cute clothes and makeup and... I'd say I have worn them about 5% of the time, mostly just on Sundays for church or once or twice when we went out to eat. It is just too hot and you get too sweaty so, most of the time, my wardrobe has been tshirts and gym shorts (plus a lava lava: a traditional wrap that goes to the knees to be worn by both men and women for modesty) and flip flops.
I did have sense enough not to pack heels for here BUT, I am going to claim a momentary lapse in brain functioning to explain why I brought my hair dryer (and my straightener!?!) to a very hot and humid place where I wasn't going to have AC. I still have not figured out how I could have been that dumb; I have used those a total of zero times!
Even if I had tried to wear makeup, it would just melt off my face. And any hairstyle would be blown into a mess by the wind or reversed by the intense humidity. It took me hardly any time to adjust to the Samoan beauty regimen :)
Not only do they focus on the NATURAL beauty of a woman without hiding behind makeup or hairstyles or using clothes as a crutch to create beauty, they are confident, precisely how God made them.
It has made me think of this:
"3 Don’t be concerned about the outward beauty of fancy hairstyles, expensive jewelry, or beautiful clothes. 4 You should clothe yourselves instead with the beauty that comes from within, the unfading beauty of a gentle and quiet spirit, which is so precious to God."- 1 Peter 3:3-4
And this:
“For Attractive lips, speak words of kindness.- Sam Levenson
For lovely eyes, seek out the good in people.
For a slim figure, share your food with the hungry.
For beautiful hair, let a child run their fingers through it once a day.
For poise, walk with the knowledge that you never walk alone.
People, more than things, have to be restored, renewed, revived, reclaimed, and redeemed. Remember, if you ever need a helping hand, you will find one at the end of each of your arms. As you grow older, you will discover that you have two hands, one for helping yourself and the other for helping others.”
And Samoan people do these things: speak kind words, share their food, value their family with everyone (even teenage boys) holding the babies and caring for the younger kids, working hard for themselves and those in their villages, etc.
What will the Southern Belle do back home?
I'm not gonna lie. I like getting dolled up and enjoy fashion after having worn uniforms for 5 years so I will still rock my cute clothes and accessories and nail polish, etc. BUT, I no longer feel like I have to in order to be beautiful. Crazy what it takes to learn a simple lesson like that and truly live it out.
I feel so liberated by not worrying over outward appearance so much here. I hope to stay in the habit of dressing down a bit more and finding comfort and confidence in my natural beauty. Plus, I want to be like the Samoan women here and I also want live out the excerpts from above by focusing more on my inner beauty.
But, truth be told, step one in my beauty regimen once I get back to the states is a pedicure that my mom has offered to pamper me with and I won't be passing that up!!! One of the ladies here told me I should get a discount since my recent Sarah Grace attack left me without all of my toenails ;)
But, truthfully, even when I am no longer in Samoa, but instead back in the land of people who get dressed up even to go to the gym or the grocery store, I'm going to try to do as the Samoans do and rock my natural beauty much more often :)
Wherever you are as you read this post, I hope you are feeling (naturally) beautiful!
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