I RESIGN

Dear Contact Lenses:
Every day. Every day, I put plastic pieces of shit in my eyes. It’s not even a choice anymore. It hurts and is annoying yet wearing contact lenses has become my routine. My glasses lay right next to my contacts but every morning I choose the contacts. I’m too self-conscious to wear glasses in public thinking I will be stereotyped as a geek. I could also fall into the stereotype of a dumb blonde who tries to wear glasses as an attempt to impersonate a more intelligent person. I am neither a geek nor a dumb blonde so I put my own comfort aside and choose to wear contacts.
Why is that? Why do we put ourselves through pain in order to look “better”. Both my parents and even some friends wear glasses and I don’t think of them as inferior for it. I feel that once I put on my glasses a mask comes on and I become shy and quiet; characteristics that don’t fit who I am; somehow wearing glasses has changed the way that I act. They aren’t even practical. I can’t swim in them and if they fall out, I’m virtually blind.
I think the media has warped my vision (forgive me for the pun), as well as the majority of the population’s, that someone wearing glasses is second-rate to someone without. Think of a supermodel, for example, and then picture her with and without glasses. Almost everyone would say the supermodel looks better without the glasses. It’s just one of the ideas we are programmed with-you have to be thin, tall, look great in clothes, have perfect skin, and NOT WEAR GLASSES. This is because not many supermodels pose with glasses on, it’s just not sexy. The media has made this stereotype, not me, yet I follow it knowing perfectly well it’s completely stupid.
So because glasses aren’t sexy, I go through the hassle of wearing contacts. Millions of women do it. We cake on makeup, get expensive laser treatments to hide wrinkles, and go on crash diets to become the “perfect woman”. But I think the fantasy of the “perfect woman” is unattainable. Everyone has insecurities, like me and my glasses, that we have to live with.
The day after I decided to write about wearing contacts I decided to wear my glasses in Chemistry Lab. I came to this decision after I realized my fear of being seen with glasses and people thinking less of me was absurd. And besides, being a geek in Chemistry Lab is acceptable. I not only wore my glasses, but also had to wear goggles on top of them! I looked ridiculous but for the first time I didn’t care. I did the experiment and left feeling proud. No one harassed me for wearing glasses or gave me funny looks. I still hate wearing contacts but maybe there is equilibrium between glasses and contacts. I can wear my contacts to most of my classes but then take them off when I’m around my friends and family. And, I can concentrate on showing my inner beauty and character instead of worrying about my looks.