When I read the prompt for today’s Five Minute Friday was “red”, I immediately thought of this perfume. It’s currently in my nightstand and it’s one of the only scents I wear. With it’s luxurious mixture of pomegranate, red osmanthius, rum, and (Ohmyword) marshmallow— it’s perfect for me. I wear it all the time. To church. On dates. Out with friends. It’s my scent. And I wanted to write about it. “Love-letter to Forever Red” was what I initially thought. But, that didn’t flow out of me like I hoped. This is the beauty of writing for five minutes — if I doesn’t work, you’ll know in the first few seconds
Then I remembered the promo video I watched shortly after buying it and thought that might give a bit of inspiration for my five minutes. Yes, I’m that type of nerdy, that I research my products before and even after I buy them. Well, it worked. I pulled it up for you to give context before I set my timer. So today I give you, “Choosing to be Forever RED”
GO:
Take a look:
[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Lst0t2kLWh4&w=560&h=315]
Don’t you want to be that girl?!?!? Isn’t she all gorgeous with her modern Julia Roberts on the way to the opera dress? I know…right! Persuasive marketing B&BW!
What’s puzzling to me though, is the title of the ad on the B&BW site: “Her story.”
Wait! What? Her “story”. Are you telling me this snapshot of baths, baubles, High-end gifts, cars, and hunks is her…”story”?
No. I don’t believe it. Her story is more than that. Her story is the heartbreak she suffered in ninth grade when her crush dumped her the night before homecoming. Her story is the tragic case of eczema she developed right before swimsuit season. Her story is the late nights on the phone mediating between girlfriends, soothing hurt feelings and re-interpreting misunderstood words. Her story is richer, deeper, better, and real-er than a sixty second promo of glamor.
And I wonder how much of this do we do? How often do we market the forever glamorous, confident, sexy, knowledgeable, put-together us as “our story”. I wonder how often we let others believe the stories they form for the sixty second Sunday morning perfect ad we project. I wonder what would happen if we said, “here is my story. It’s marked with moments of red-faced embarrassment, and ‘seeing red’ rage fits, and red passion for people and ideas, and runny red noses from crying over my insecurities”. What ways would we and our relationships be forever changed? I think dramatically. I think as dramatic as that dress and the way it flowed in the breeze. All natural and beautiful and striking. That’s what marks story-telling as true, authentic, real—the ways is flows naturally, creates beauty where there were ashes, and strikes the hearts of it’s listeners. I want to live in that powerful, “really real”. Oh Lord, how often have I let others believe the superficial, promo ad of my life as “my story”? Too often and I hope to change. Because I want to be Forever RED. Forever Real. Forever Exposed. Forever Daring. In all of my relationships.
STOP
It’s not too late to join this amazing group of writers, who take five minutes every Friday and dare to write.
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