Welcome readers, old and new!
Please tap that ❤️ above to see why you should definitely keep singing Let It Go (or anything else) in the shower.
I was going to take a break this week, but I’ve been thinking about vulnerability and how it plays across a face to make it beautiful. It’s hard to define what it is exactly about the state that effects the features in such a way that it tenders them lovelier—but in my experience, it’s undeniable.
I imagine many of us are feeling particularly vulnerable these days, due to the imposed weight of the holidays and the condition of our environment, both physical and ideological. There’s one thing that always seems to alleviate the discomfort of vulnerability even while supporting it: poetry.
So (in spite of a lousy cold… or maybe spiting a lousy cold) I’m reading two of my favorite poems this week, hoping you’ll find them worthy of your time.
I’ll see you after the first of the year with our regularly scheduled programming.
Happy holidays, dear Readers. Be well!
Oh, and don’t forget: There’s a sale going on for annual subscriptions, $35/year, till December 31st!
HNTFUYF is a payola-free, reader-supported zone. I get no cut from sales when I mention any kind of product. My recommendations are offered without obligation, making HNTFUYF one of the very few places where you can get unadulterated advice, beauty and otherwise.
Can’t afford a subscription? Write to me at valeriemonroe@substack.com and I’ll give you a comp.
Val Asks You
Questions, questions, Val loves them! (Also, exclamation points.) What’s your most intractable appearance issue? Send your beauty-related questions to valeriemonroe@substack.com. If I don’t have a good answer, I’ll find someone who does.
