To protect her privacy, I will not give her last name, as she may not want this episode connected with her, in spite of or even because practically half a century has passed, but the now-woman-then-high-school-girl I’ll call Peggy (because that was — and, I presume, still is — her name) provided me with a pleasant surprise one day at school. I have long wanted to know “the rest of the story” about it, but — spoiler alert: I don’t know. I only have theories and conjectures.
First, I’ll tell you what happened, then I will tell you the possible scenarios that played out in my mind.
One day … well, first some background information: Peggy seemed, physically, rather ordinary. She was certainly not ugly, but perhaps a little on the plain side, at first and second glance. She dressed in such a way as to not call attention to herself. She was not loud or vivacious; she appeared to be, from my perspective, rather subdued — quiet, or shy, or maybe even a little aloof.
One day, though, she appeared at school after apparently spending considerable time and attention on her makeup, which caused me to do a double-take when I saw her; then a triple-take. She was stunningly beautiful! Her makeup (mascara, eyeliner, etc.) was not overdone, but it definitely had been methodically and meticulously applied.
She seemed especially happy that day, and confident. It was obvious she was aware that she looked good and that people were noticing her new look. I looked forward to seeing this “new Peggy” every day from then on.
But I was disappointed: The next day Peggy reverted back to the comparatively invisible version of herself.
Why? is what I’ve always wondered. Why the dramatic change for a single day, followed by a return to her status quo the next? I was very curious, but never asked her about it. That would have been awkward — probably for her, and definitely for me. After all, I barely knew her. I knew her name. I think she knew mine, but I can’t be sure of that, because as far as I can recall, she never uttered it. I don’t think we ever had a conversation.
Several possible things might have happened that caused her to allow herself to be transformed into a beauty queen one day, and several things may have persuaded her to revert back to her “old self” the next. These are some of the scenarios that played out in my imagination:
Her mother, or an aunt or grandmother or someone, had told her that “small is the worth of beauty from the light retired,” and persuaded her to allow them to show her (and her peers/classmates) how much could be accomplished with the cosmetic arts.
She had always wanted to wear makeup like that, but her mother and/or father wouldn’t allow her to. That day she had the opportunity to do it without her, him, or them noticing (they were away for the day, maybe?).
It was an experiment to see if other people would treat her differently if she changed from an “ugly duckling” into a swan.
Who knows?
But even more perplexing to me is why, after seeing how beautiful she could be, she reverted back to “normalcy” after being “(beauty) queen for a day.”
Had she received unwanted attention from boys in general, or a certain boy in particular? Don’t look at me, I was circumspect in my admiration.
Had she gotten pushback from the other pretty girls in school, who were not admitting any new members to their exclusive “club”?
Had her parents forbade her to return to school similarly decorated after that day?
Did she find the reaction she got didn’t warrant the extra time it took to get ready for school each day?
Had she decided that outward beauty was overrated, after all, and didn’t want to be judged based on her appearance?
If it was an experiment of sorts, had she gathered all the data she needed from that single day? Or maybe proving she was beautiful was enough; she didn’t feel the need to present the evidence anew thereafter — she considered the case closed.
As I said near the outset, I don’t have the answers to these questions.
The final question, directed this time to you (“dear reader”), is: How many people (especially of the “female persuasion” — and I know that might sound politically incorrect to some) do you know who would deliberately downplay or de-emphasize their physical attractiveness? I think the number is probably vanishingly small.
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