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SIMPLICITY IN MY SLUM BOOK DAYS
Kathlyn Q. Barrozo
Class of 1991, University of Santo Tomas
B.S. Medical Technology
Back during the days when the start of summer vacation signaled the beginning of slum book preparation, one
quote that was written by a classmate on another classmate’s slum book caught my eye. Simplicity is beauty.
One very unassuming statement that declared how being simple in whatever aspect is equivalent to beauty. I
was impressed, third grade student that I was, about the wisdom that my classmate possessed. I happened to
glance at the writer of that remarkable quote and indeed, it was not at all surprising that she had come up with
such a lovely statement. My classmate possessed that unpretentiously beautiful face. She was fair, had
naturally well-shaped eyebrows, great skin and glowing eyes. She also happened to be my best friend at that
time.
Since time immemorial, I have been drawn to simple people, those who do not need to do anything about
themselves just to get the attention of others. Women who are able to wake up with a clean face that still
radiates with great beauty have amazed me. They do not need to tweak their faces with make-up nor use
tweezers to harm their faces. There was a time when the rage to have penciled-in eyebrows that were also
thinned out considerably was something that women liked to have done on them at the beauty salon.
Admittedly, I underwent that phase, only I wouldn’t have anyone do it on me. Wielding a wicked-looking pair of
tweezers, I’d pluck out those stubborn eyebrow hairs that grew beyond an imaginary growth line and endured
the pain that doing so inflicted. I even experimented at using women’s razors since they were quicker and gave
less pain. The downside was, once the hairs grew back in, they were thicker and the eyebrow line ultimately
was much more “unruly”. I just simply gave up hoping that I’d be able to tame my eyebrow line. It simply is
impossible.
Then I read an article on Brooke Shields. She it was who was (and still is) gifted with a beautiful face- sans make
up- and a great body. Literally, hers is the face that launched a thousand ads. She had thick eyebrows, and that
article said she never needed to pluck her eyebrows when she was still active at modeling. She may have
decided to tame her eyebrows a little when she got older, but people will always remember how her thick
eyebrows in her younger years only added to the total package of loveliness she presented back then. The
article also stated that thick eyebrows make a woman look younger.
Now I certainly do not profess to have beauty such as my third grade best friend and Brooke Shields possessed
(and certainly still possess). But I’ve decided to just let simplicity take over as far as my face is concerned.
Besides, simplicity is more of an attitude that should permeate all aspects of our lives. The simpler we are, the
lovelier our lives will be.
QUESTIONS FOR DISCUSSION:
1. Define simplicity in your own terms.
2. How does the saying “less is more” apply to women?
3. What, to you, constitutes simple living?
4. What are the simple values in life that you adhere to?
5. How will you teach your own children about simplicity?