At a recent awards show, former pop idol Madonna drew some fairly unkind comments about her battle with aging - a fight we all face in one way or another - and how badly her obvious plastic surgery had turned out.
People often think of celebrities, and often, it appears as thinly-veiled jealousy. They're rich. They have lifestyles that appear glamourous and easy. Few people say "no." My own life is comfortable if not glamourous. I have complaints of course, but in the grand scheme of things, there are few things that I really want that are out of reach. Most of those are not really worth having, to be honest.
So I am not envious of celebrities.
But the comments about Madonna and subsequent arguments in social media made me think. One in particular popped up - "What celebrity, in your opinion, has aged the worst?" Almost all the responses focused on people who either got fat, lost their hair, had bad plastic surgery, or some combination of the lot.
I do not have the money and apparent carefree lifestyle of a Hollywood star. On the other hand, as I get older, and look older, no-one cares. I am not going to wind up on the cover of a tabloid being photographed in sweat pants walking out of an AM/PM.
And thus, my answer is likely different compared to others. And it is this.
Rather than engage in a discussion of people who once looked great but now as they have gotten older do not look so good anymore, or posting “shocking” pictures of a 55 year old woman without makeup, I would say that when it comes to aging “poorly,” nothing can top not aging at all.
The celebrity who aged “the worst” in my opinion is River Phoenix, who if he were alive, would be the same age as I am. We were both born in 1970.
Phoenix ran out of tomorrows in 1993. He was 23 years old.
I have no idea how River Phoenix would look today if he were alive. But ultimately, Madonna is alive and River Phoenix isn't. And that counts for something.
We should feel grateful that we are given today and not regret that we looked better at some point in the past.
People, if they are lucky, age. None of us - not you, not me - look better at 50 than we did at 25. It’s just that simple.
