Strawberry Meets World: March 2014

Last night my Facebook feed was chocca full of make-up free selfies.

At first it was funny, then as it started to fill I found myself getting annoyed.

I mean, how the hell is a photo going to help our fight against cancer?

Sure, we can 'raise awareness', but I don't know a single soul who doesn't know what cancer is.

We all have an idea of how to avoid it (plenty of suncream & no smoking).

We've all had the 'I've found a lump' panic (even if it's only a split second until you realise that's a bone and it's always been there. I recently had a mole go all peculiar, turned out to be a strategically placed spot. Boo hiss).

And we've all been scarred by losing someone to this terrible disease.

No make up selfie Vs cancer?

Seems ridiculous.

Until I dug deeper.

Too often, women can be awful to each other. There's always gossip, mis-information and far too much stirring behind each other's backs. It drives me to distraction, so it's nice to see us working together, as it were.

There is something very beautiful in the solidarity between all my female Facebook friends.

ok, so not all these women are my FB friends lol, I added a few extras :)

What's even nicer, is that it seems this no make-up trend actually derived from an act of support from a woman to a woman.

Laura Lippman posted a selfie on twitter with the hashtag #itsokkimnovak after 81 year old Kim Novak received a lot of negative attention due to her appearance at the Oscars.

Laura Lippman's selfie

Kim Novak at the Oscars

It immediately went viral with both women and men posting selfies using the hashtag.

In a matter of days it seems, the trend on Facebook has twisted it to 'raise awareness' for cancer. Bit random, but Facebook does always have a tendency to be a tad sensationalist.

I don't know why Lippman chose to go make up free when Novak was being attacked for her over use of plastic surgery, but I hope she was trying to express that we should be more accepting of how a woman chooses to present herself to the world.
I mean, yes ok, she's 81 and she's had a hell of lot of work done, but she's old school Hollywood. That's her life, not mine. Her choice, not mine. What she does with her face is her business (literally).

This made me laugh, not because this is how I view my naturally beautiful friends, but because my inner nerd loves this movie.

But it does raise a valid point.

We're all so afraid.

Most of my friend's selfies come complete with an apology for looking so rough.

The no make up selfie could be about accepting who we are as we are and trying to be more content.

The happier you are with your body, the more likely you are to touch it, check it and therefore spot anything unusual. We are also more likely to nip off to the docs & get our bits out for inspection & therefore get the treatment we need.

Only the other night I was watching Channel 4's Embarrassing Bodies. Dr Christian was measuring men's penis' (is the plural peni?) so they could gage 'growers' and 'show'ers'. His main point was that if they aren't ashamed of their manhood & aren't worried the Dr will laugh at the size of it, they'll be more likely to get it checked if anything peculiar cropped up.

And that's how the no make-up selfie could help raise awareness for cancer.

By making us love ourselves that little bit more.

As well as a surge in self love, I hope that cancer charities all over get a surge in donations too.

I'm so pleased to see some of my FB friends have chosen to post links to donation pages, because I think, though it's lovely to wave a sympathetic hand, but money, actual money is of more use.

A really easy way is to text 'beat' to 70099 to donate £3.

Cancer Research will receive at least £2.81 depending on your operator.

(UK only)

Or you donate another way here.

When I've posted this, I'll be sending that text.

It's of course up to you. It's your money. I'm not judging anyone.

For now, here's my selfie.

I'm not wearing any make-up - honest.

I want to end with something I found on the Militant Baker's FB page.
"I'd rather be an honest mess, than be a perfect lie".
(If you want to start learning about self love, start there)

**************************************UPDATE***************************************

I had to add something here, simply because after I wrote this, the no-make up selfie did do something completley amazing; donations are up by record levels.
stuff like this kept apearing on my news feed;