Like a Good Wine

Being beautiful is not enough. We have to believe it. We need to be able to walk with our heads held high and be absolutely confident in ourselves. And if we do so, nothing will ever get in the way. Not even time.

Lenny Kravitz, by Norman Jean Roy

For those who thought that aging was a synonym for degradation, you have no idea how wrong you are. Before the global trend of self-care and self-acceptance took place a couple of years ago, we were often told sentences like "You won't keep that chiseled body forever" or "You know, there are other things in life other than looking pretty - imagine when you will be old!" Been there, done that. And for a moment, it almost worked. Listening to the same recommendations every single day of our lives nearly got to us, convincing us that we were kind of allowed to go into degradation as we grew older. Fortunately, in more recent times, we've been literally overwhelmed with the phenomenon of self-beauty, self-care, or whatever name you want to give it. We have rediscovered the pleasure of preserving our bodies and our health. We have reached a deeper acknowledgment of how damn important it is to take care of our existence. FYI: we just live once. We've been reminded that beauty goes through phases and that there’s no expiration date. When we are 60 or older, we can still feel as attractive as we were in our golden days. Simply because that’s another kind of appeal. I’m not saying that from tomorrow onward, everybody should feel obligated to go into full-immersion compulsive shopping mode, only buying healthy or living healthy. But, if you were to try - trust me - it wouldn’t do you any harm.

Now, I’m not sure if this growing awareness has turned itself into an actual habit of the global population. But one thing is for sure: more and more people are putting effort and a high level of attention into themselves as they progress with age. Yes, the world is broad, and probably what I’m saying now could be easily rebutted by those who don’t necessarily feel this way. But there’s a sign or two that someone thinks my way.

Hollywood. The celebs. We all grew up looking up to male and female figures who entertained us on TV, making us dream and unwind. And I’m not sure if it ever happened to you, but sometimes I’ve asked myself when these good-looking actors and actresses would eventually give in to time and aging - as the rest of humanity. But as the years went by, I witnessed a beauty that instead of fading away, got stronger and stronger, consolidating a perception of deeper, sexier charm. Lenny Kravitz, Brad Pitt, George Clooney, Michelle Pfeiffer, Demi Moore, Antonio Banderas, Sharon Stone. The list is very long, and plus, I’m not even sure you all had enough time to read it all. They have shown the world what it means to still be beautiful, accomplished, and charming as we advance in age. As the role models they represent, they have given the entire population something to look up to. A path to keep on following. If we see that level of commitment to preserving our beauty even when we are over 60, isn’t that a trigger to push us all to do the same?

Brad Pitt - 60 if you can believe it. Yes, he’s definitely not the Brad Pitt of "Troy" and he’s not anymore the two-time winner of the Male Sex Symbol award. He’s a different version of himself. But that probably is even more attractive and gripping than the younger one. The style has evolved, infused with a touch of freshness and coolness. The hair kept on changing, moving from long straight hairstyles to more comfortable, and traditional dad cuts. But the charm never left its position. The voice got deeper, and the smile remained the same. Brad Pitt has clearly embraced the new image of himself as a grown man who has had a hell of a career filled with many experiences. And that’s exactly what makes people fascinated by him. The aura of the lived man perfectly plays his game.

Brad Pitt in Babylon, Photography by Scott Garfield

The reason for this eternal beauty? Many could say the quality of life, possibly made of high-quality nutrition or the best body-treatment activities. To me, it’s simply love. After two troubled marriage experiences that broke his heart into pieces, the star seems finally to have found his way back to the path of love with the beautiful 34-year-old Swiss jewelry professional - Ines De Ramon.

Lenny Kravitz. Younger than always. It seems like the wild, excessive, and sexy spirit of the 90s never left the house. The style didn’t change by a comma, conveying the usual feeling of an eternal rock star. And the music certainly did no less. In fact, coming as his 12th studio album, Lenny Kravitz has officially released a month ago "Blue Electric Light". Now, I’m not sure if all of you are familiar with his aesthetic and style, but if you have watched the video clip of TK421 - which came out on YouTube in October 2023 - you’ll know what I’m aiming at. If you didn’t know this was one of the songs part of the new 2024 album, you’d probably still be wondering whether that was an old archive video or not. He literally looks incredible. The style, the voice, the attitude. Everything takes us back to our beloved memory lane. And one thing we can’t help but notice is certainly the physique. How is it possible for a 60-year-old to still have a body like that? Well - as stated by the same Kravitz - the key is given by a fully vegan diet, matched with a successful workout mentality. The singer is living proof that our parents - the same that told us "You won’t keep that chiseled body forever" - couldn’t be more wrong.

Lenny Kravitz at 2024 People's Choice Awards, Getty Images 

The point is not to investigate the factors that kept each of these Hollywood stars in perfect shape. It’s not about trying to replicate the most healthy lifestyle like Kravitz or trying to find the perfect love like Pitt. Each situation is subjective, and the things that kept someone else alive and glowing could not necessarily do the same for you. The key here is to take a look at the bigger picture. A frame where all the results you see now are just the tip of a much bigger iceberg hidden under the surface. It’s about confidence. The self-acceptance. The maturity developed that allows us to face reality and make the most of it. They realized that chasing after their old version would have led them straight to depression. We will never be able to keep up with time. But what we can do is accept what we have, and do it with confidence. Hiding from reality, and trying to be the same person we were 20 years ago at the peak of life, wouldn’t take us anywhere. On the contrary, it would just make us look fake. And all of this takes us directly to the acknowledgment of a hidden side of our human nature. There’s a part of us that - since the origin of times - has created myths and legends out of simple stars, and celebrities. The process is very simple: we build a pedestal, we place them on it, and we wait. When everything is roses and flowers - well - who could ever say anything wrong about them? They’re young, accomplished, and rich - probably the perfect triangle of elements that anybody in the common perception of living would want to have. We cheer them up. We root for them. Until we don’t. Until they make a mistake. Until they let go. At that point, we are allowed to start throwing judgments and insults because the myth is gone. Because the star is not the same anymore. Well - for all those who were just waiting for this moment to come - I guess you’ll have to take a rain check. Simply because they have no intention of agreeing with you any time soon.