The Power of Make-Up

Tonight I pampered 33 of the absolutely most beautiful women I've ever seen. Unfortunately, you'll never see them on the catwalk, gracing the pages of fashion magazines, or larger than life in all their celluloid fabulousness.

These women all live at Clearbrook and all have some form of developmental disabilities. Tonight was a special spa night for them. Clearbrook treated them to a dinner of sub sandwiches and then they had their nails, hair, and make-up done. I did the make-up.

Some of the women couldn't wait to see what was in my bags; others were shy and timid.

As I began to set up, a woman named Rochelle walked up, sat down, and proceeded to quiz me. What's your name? Where do you live? Is it nice? Where do you work? What is your religion? What church do you go to? Are you married? How old are your kids? Do you have a cat? What kind? What's his name? Immediately, I was put at ease.

A few minutes later the first group of women walked in and I suddenly got nervous. I teach women how to apply and wear make-up all the time, but they all have advanced motor skills and know something about make-up. For many of these women, this was their first experience with make-up . . . ever.

Immediately, they asked if I was going to do their make-up for them. I don't ever do anyone's make-up. What makes Mary Kay unique is that we teach women how to do it themselves rather than doing it for them, but I was momentarily re-thinking whether this was the right move with these women. Exuding confidence I didn't really have, I told them I was going to teach them how to do their make-up. Some weren't sure they could, but I assured them it would all be all right. The more I said it, the more I believed it.

By the end of the evening and with only one mascara mistake that we quickly corrected, almost 33 women had been pampered, taught a new skill, and had smiles on their faces the size of Texas. They told me about their boyfriends and couldn't wait to show them their new looks. They ooh'd and ahh'd over each other and giggled about lipstick application. Some of them told me about their jobs and helped each other when I didn't have enough hands or couldn't answer all the questions at once. They all had a new confidence about applying and wearing make-up themselves.

After everyone finished, the ladies all clapped for each other, thanked me profusely, and went on to their next stop - hair or nails. I thought I was done and had begun cleaning up, when one last woman walked in alone with one of the staff members. She said she changed her mind and wanted to try some make-up, after all. She had been unsure before because people told her she didn't look good with make-up, but she wanted to try. Without hesistation, I pulled the make-up back out and told her she was the luckiest woman of the evening because we got to work one-on-one and she'd get the most attention. Ten minutes later, her eyes were beaming with pride and we couldn't get the mirror out of her hand. She not only looked beautiful, but she had done it herself, as they all had, and she was overflowing with pride.

As we were finishing, another woman walked back in and wrapped her arms around me to say thank you.

I honestly don't know who was more affected tonight, me or the beautiful women of Clearbrook. They learned a new skill, gained confidence, and were reminded they are beautiful. I re-learned the power of making a woman feel good about herself; that no matter who we are, whether we have disabilities, or are fully able-bodied, and no matter what our skill level, we all want to feel like the most beautiful woman in the world. I fell in love with my job all over again.

The Healing Sounds of Music

When I was about 6, my mom enrolled me in piano lessons. At the time, I hated them. Mostly because I didn't like practicing. But with practice, I became okay (not great, but okay) and I stopped disliking my lessons. I think I took piano lessons until the end of 8th grade. I also sang in the church choir from 3rd grade through the end of 8th grade. I enjoyed that a lot. Finally, I took up playing the flute in 5th grade and continued until mid-way through sophomore year of high school. I enjoyed that a lot too.

Looking back, I think my enjoyment of choir and playing the flute came in part from the fact that I had a music foundation because of playing the piano. I knew how to read music - once you know all the notes, they are the same across all instruments. I understood what being "in tune" meant. I understood harmony and melody. I could keep time. The only thing I had to master was singing or actually playing the flute because I knew the theory.

Musicians have always fascinated me. I have a great deal of respect for people who have the discipline I lacked and have fully developed their musical talents. In fact, I melt for a man who plays the guitar and will sing to me. Humming works too.

Since our earliest ages, we respond to music. Most of us drifted off to sleep as babies to the soothing sounds of our parents' songs. It didn't matter if they were good or could even carry a tune. We learned our ABC's thanks to the Alphabet Song. We learned to spell thanks to music - B-I-N-G-O anyone? And where would we be without School House Rock, Sesame Street, or Mr. Rodgers? Today's kids know Barney and the Teletubbies. Yes, music was at the core of our early education and most of us not only look back fondly on these lessons, but still have the tunes stuck in our brains.

Not only is music educational, it's also therapeutic. According to the American Music Therapy Association, music therapy can promote wellness, manage stress, alleviate pain, express feelings, enhance memory, improve communication, and promote physical rehabilitation.

Without question, music is fundamental.

The Music Room in Palatine is helping promote wellness and development by refurbishing and donating instruments for the developmentally disabled clients of Clearbrook in Arlington Heights. These instruments will help with improving behavior, socialization, and reducing aggression.

So if you've got some instruments in your closet gathering dust from another lifetime, give them new life by donating them to The Music Room. Your gift may just open new doors for people with few doors open to them and change their lives.