Today, I  give myself PERMISSION to just be. 

In particular, just be where I am…with this blog.  It has seemed so hard to just start that which I’ve been thinking about for so long. I have a lot of thoughts and experiences about the topic of beauty.  Yet resistance has kept me frozen more than how busy I have been. Perfectionism and procrastination are no friends to anyone seeking to live a full, exciting, passionate and truly beautiful life.  They certainly haven’t been my friends…

But  that’s not what I wanted to talk about. What I really wanted to talk about is PARIS… , France that is. I am planning to go there this October for two weeks. I have not been back to see my dear friends there since 2001. It’s too long for my soul because Paris is a place that makes me feel beautiful and passionately alive. I went to see the movie “Julie & Julia” and felt my heart aching to be in those amazing open air markets, eating crusty croissants, orgasmic pastry ; going to fabulous galleries and laughing in little cafes with good friends I have known for years . I loved the movie because it brought me home to one of my favorite places on earth and I got inspired by Julie’s blog idea. I  reminded me that my own blog was waiting for me to break the ice and POST!

One of the things I like to do in Paris is to speak French.I do speak some  French although mostly I speak a sort of “Franglaise”… I actually give myself permission to speak as much as I can in French and then when I can’t remember the correct word I say it in English, a patch work of the two languages. And I just let it be OK because I love the feeling of the language in my mouth and the sound of it around me. Franglaise does require a willingness to get your point across at the risk of sounding stupid. It is precisely because I love the language and the feeling I have speaking it that makes me so willing to be imperfect with it. and it’s FUN. But the key part is giving myself the permission to not  speak French perfectly. Just get in there and make  a mess and do it with great joy.

I think expressing beauty is the same thing. Just have fun with it. Give lots of permission to be ourselves. Fashion should be an inspiration to have more fun not a barometer to measure our insufficiencies.

I know that when I do what I love I feel more beautiful. What makes you feel passionate and beautiful? I would love to hear your thoughts…