I loved The Only Way is Essex the totally "reem" show about the beautifully vacuous birds and blokes whose colourful lives make my existence look depressingly grey by comparison! Their obsession with their looks is hilarious...down to buying shoes that are 2 sizes too small because they look "tall and reem" when worn that way. Their waxing, beauty therapies, dress sense, hairstyles and botox parties seem so utterly beyond my own remit for what really matters in life. To me, things that matter most are the love of my family, my children and my integrity as a human being. The superficial qualities so expertly exercised by Joey, Lauren, Mark et al are from the realms of the unfathomable. But my comparison, their exploits are positively wholesome!
Something I read today totally turned my stomach. A British single mum, now living in San Diego, is so adamant that her daughter will be a star that she is taking matters into her own hands to ensure she will look the part. From a botoxed, expressionless face, to trout pout lips to tattooed eyebrows, this beautician mum is using all the weapons in her arsenal to halt the ageing process on her only child. The problem is, her daughter is SEVEN! Seven years old and subjected to bi-monthly beauty treatments at the hands of her vicariously ambitious mother.
The aim is for her to win pageants as a stepping stone to a career in showbiz as an 'A-Lister'. Oh how this offends me!!! Willow Smith is her role model, but when you see the progeny of Will and Jada you see a fresh faced child whipping her hair back and forth, blessed with the looks, talent and privelege that is her birthright. However, this poor child, born to a woman blinded by her desire to live her life through her daughter, is being promised stardom and seduced by the prospect of being Britney for the new generation. She endures treatments akin to torture. Her next enhancement is a tattooed lip line. At a time in her life where she should be young and free, occasionally raiding mummy's make-up bag to experiment with lipstick...she is being thrown into an adult world where looks are everything and nothing else matters except being famous.
I'm sure the little girl never gets to play...heaven forbid a scraped knee! I bet her food consumption is monitored to the point where eating disorders will became inevitable. It beggars belief that a child can be treated as an object in this way. The whole essence of childhood has been stripped away, replaced by a worry of a wrinkling brow or even a spot.
When the bubble bursts, what will mum do next. A boob job at 16? A stepping stone into being a star of the adult genre as another chance of stardom perhaps. It doesn't bear thinking about.
This is apparently not an isolated case either. It is becoming common to give pageant children botox and fillers. It is not illegal as the administration is self-regulated. Botox can even be bought online. Are we really becoming so hung up on looks, fame and celebrity that people are prepared to sacrifice their kids' childhoods to claim a piece of that pie.
I will continue to enjoy my children as nature intended! Dirty mouths, chubby cheeks, tousled hair and the beaming smiles that come with having nothing to worry about and knowing that I think they are beautiful as they are.
