Glow by Lady E

Lately, I’ve been thinking about what stays.  Choosing beauty.  I said that I no longer let things stay that are not aligned with the life I’m building now.  That’s somewhat easier to say about non-tangible things. But what if it’s something - a product, an item, that I just bought? How do I deal with that? Do I throw it away or give it away immediately? What I’m learning in this journey is that I need to let different aspects of my being decide.  With product, of course my body decides.  No matter how much I like something, if my body says no, I stop. Like the lotion above.  The scent lingered too loudly on my skin.  I kept coughing.  But I had just bought it.  And I didn’t quite want to let go of it yet.  So I waited a few days and tried to think of something to do with it.    If my body says a loud no to some products, she also says a loud yes to some.  Like this soap. I didn’t think much of it.  I just saw the big...

  For years, I poured everything into everyone else—my child, my home, my work. I put myself last. And I told myself that was noble. But I’ve realized that self-sacrifice without self-care leads to burnout, not sainthood. The truth? You can’t pour from an empty cup. When I flipped the switch, I started pouring into myself. I started investing in myself. I no longer feel guilty if I use my money to buy things for myself, things that I need and things that make me happy.  I no longer feel guilty if I come home hands full of shopping bags and wasn't able to buy anything for my son. For years, I always made sure that I got my son   pasalubong  (homecoming gift) whenever I went out. Now, I no longer feel guilty if mom got stuff and he didn't. That doesn’t mean I love him less—it means I’m learning to love myself more, too. Here are some things I’ve been doing to invest in myself. These are more than purchases—they’re little promises I keep to myself. 💧 A Tumble...

 Remember when moms say:  “You’ll feel all those late nights when you’re older.” I never partied until sunrise. I didn’t survive on coffee or late nights. I actually avoided sleep deprivation like the plague. But even with all that, I’ve come to realize that how we care for ourselves in our teens and twenties shapes how we look and feel in our thirties and beyond. Your skin remembers everything — The nights you didn’t remove your makeup properly. The weeks you lived on fast food and instant noodles. It adds up. I’ve watched enough K-dramas to know the line by heart:  “I don’t want to eat instant noodles at night. My face will be puffy tomorrow.” They know. And they’re right. That puffiness becomes a pattern. That pattern becomes texture. And later, you’ll wonder why your skin doesn’t bounce back the way it used to. Here's the thing: Your future self is built by your current habits. How you treat your body in your teens and 20s is what your 30s and 40s inherit. That one ba...