First: I want to THANK you for sharing of your mind and spirit, which make me look forward to your every posting.
You are right that we tend to overlook beauty in clothing and scent, but we humans are creatures of our senses, and the aesthetic of our image and scent is basic to self-esteem and to attraction of persons we want to love and from whom we want to be loved.
My own life is inestimably enriched by THE woman I have loved for 53, been married to 51 years, Nancy, who is beautiful, who attracts my eye and my love now as she did 53 years ago.
My life would be infinitely poorer without THIS woman.
And attraction is very much at the center.
Now fashion and clothing is much more than attraction. There is the clothing that emphasizes the professionalism of the person, the leadership or leadership potential of the person.
I am one who reads Plato, Aristotle, Spinoza, David Hume, Immanuel Kant -- so, my beautiful Nancy would easily tell you, "Armando's head is in the clouds."
But the person's overall look and scent is an inestimable part of who S/He is.
In your writing about your good, too-early departed sister, Miriam Ascher, you told how this same Mom with good fashion and scent was helpless and your sister helped rear you.
Yet even in this situation, you were able to find some part of redemption in the beauty and scent of your Mom that embedded itself on how you wanted to grow into the grand woman you ARE.
This is precious.
When I was a boy, I played with trains and the like. An adult might say, "Well, OK, but that is not for me; it is trivial."
But for boys, as with other young of animals, play is a vital part of who we become. Play is WORK IN REHEARSAL.
And your smelling of the scents and your admiration of the beautiful clothing was the work of a girl in becoming the GRAND PERSON you are.
I -- with my head in the clouds of philosophy, literature, classical music, Renaissance Art -- I would never belittle the interest in fashion.
This is part of our culture, in a way similar to how persons spend whole lives in designing and perfecting grand cuisine. Look how we are enriched by the foods, be it of India, Japan, Korea, France, the Mediterranean . . .
Annabel Ascher: Your writings are important, many on Subst
ack, but from my interest in you and your insights, I found one that really speaks to my heart, from you, on a different platform:
https://annabelascher.medium.com/abuse-writ-large-an-exit-strategy-16406eca2aff
I was particularly moved by your posting here:
https://annabelascher.substack.com/p/for-my-sister-miriam-ascher
First: I want to THANK you for sharing of your mind and spirit, which make me look forward to your every posting.
You are right that we tend to overlook beauty in clothing and scent, but we humans are creatures of our senses, and the aesthetic of our image and scent is basic to self-esteem and to attraction of persons we want to love and from whom we want to be loved.
My own life is inestimably enriched by THE woman I have loved for 53, been married to 51 years, Nancy, who is beautiful, who attracts my eye and my love now as she did 53 years ago.
My life would be infinitely poorer without THIS woman.
And attraction is very much at the center.
Now fashion and clothing is much more than attraction. There is the clothing that emphasizes the professionalism of the person, the leadership or leadership potential of the person.
I am one who reads Plato, Aristotle, Spinoza, David Hume, Immanuel Kant -- so, my beautiful Nancy would easily tell you, "Armando's head is in the clouds."
But the person's overall look and scent is an inestimable part of who S/He is.
In your writing about your good, too-early departed sister, Miriam Ascher, you told how this same Mom with good fashion and scent was helpless and your sister helped rear you.
Yet even in this situation, you were able to find some part of redemption in the beauty and scent of your Mom that embedded itself on how you wanted to grow into the grand woman you ARE.
This is precious.
When I was a boy, I played with trains and the like. An adult might say, "Well, OK, but that is not for me; it is trivial."
But for boys, as with other young of animals, play is a vital part of who we become. Play is WORK IN REHEARSAL.
And your smelling of the scents and your admiration of the beautiful clothing was the work of a girl in becoming the GRAND PERSON you are.
I -- with my head in the clouds of philosophy, literature, classical music, Renaissance Art -- I would never belittle the interest in fashion.
This is part of our culture, in a way similar to how persons spend whole lives in designing and perfecting grand cuisine. Look how we are enriched by the foods, be it of India, Japan, Korea, France, the Mediterranean . . .
Again: Thank you SO MUCH for sharing!