Clinging to the Nest: Age and Appearances

Copyright (c) Noelle Adams. All Rights Reserved.

The semester draws to an end. For people graduating, the assignments and last-minute exam cramming will soon be over. But something’s off. Something that’ll trumpet your entry into the adult world, is missing. 

The answer arrives unexpectedly one morning, ten minutes before a First. You dribble out of bed, shove aside beers in the otherwise empty digs fridge, shower, brush your teeth. It’s then that you notice your reflection in the bathroom mirror. The toothbrush slips from your fingers. You yell, ‘I look too young to be twenty-one!’   

Botox-paralysed fifty-year-olds may scoff about age-obsessed students. In reality, a youthful appearance is concerning. Forget embarrassing ID checks on Pigs’ Night. Think more along the lines of striding into a job interview and being asked, ‘Can’t you find your mommy, dear?’   

In attempting to appear older, and apparently more experienced, you can slap on make-up, sandpaper off stubble, and open a Woolworths account, but these are superficial changes. Deep down, you know you look immature.   

The problem is comparisons made to students on TV, in film and in adverts. Consider Beverly Hills 90210, Van Wilder, Doritos ads. Most of the actors are in their mid-twenties to thirties. It’s unsurprising that we don’t resemble what we think we should. 

The thing is, who wants to waste their life worrying about expectations?  

You don’t want to end up a Botox-saturated fifty-year-old, still chasing ideals.