A Poem on Ageing and Self-Acceptance: ‘Nobody Told Me’

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“Isn’t it bizarre,
to be so aware,
and yet still, at times,
so carelessly clueless.”

@TheSortingHouse

A Poem about Feminine Freedom & Expression

Today I am sharing a poem on natural ageing and personal peace. A text that explores various issues I’ve faced on the raw journey toward radical self-acceptance in a world determined to shape us to the ideals of synthetic industry.

Currently, we live in an artificial world that heavily rewards fake homogeneity and the use of technological manipulation over the diversity and individuality in our alleged natural “flaws”.

Increasingly the world is becoming one that celebrates conformity to lies more than the raw truth in being.

“We’ve normalised this loss of trust. We live in a world where models don’t look like their photos, where influencers present lives that don’t exist, where politicians sell visions that bear no resemblance to reality, where everything is filtered, processed, optimised for consumption. […] Somewhere along the way, [we] stopped fighting back. [We] accepted that authenticity is old-fashioned, naive, unrealistic. […] We’ve become so accustomed to being lied to that we stopped expecting the truth.” – Asa Parks via Exposing Musics Greatest Scam

Anyone attempting to go against this industry-established grain is often met with resistance, not just from the systems put in place but by the unknowing masses that uphold it.

Whether it’s friends or family, colleagues or strangers on the internet; most dislike to see anything breaking free from the norm and this pushback affects some more than others.

Nevertheless, as any true alchemist knows, where there is resistance, there’s potential for transmutation and energetic evolution.

‘Nobody Told Me’ is a poem born from my ongoing journey of shedding synthetic expectations and embracing the under current of a wild, natural self.

This poem is for everyone who’s ever struggled to feel enough in a world that profits from their insecurities. It’s for who ever looked in the mirror and wondered why authenticity feels like rebellion. And for anyone that despite the challenges, is still choosing that rebellion anyway.

– Nobody Told Me –

by Natacha Neveu

Nobody told me,
how difficult it would be,
to fully embrace myself,
naturally.

How challenging,
it really would be,
to age in truth,
and somehow,
find the way, 
to do so "gracefully".

Nobody told me, 
how heavy it would be,
just to be me,
entirely me,
in the now,
joyfully wild,
and simply free.

Without even
a smidgen of these
synthetic interventions.

Nobody told me,
how hard it would be,
after strife and challenge,
to still love myself,
and accept,
each stage of the process,
dutifully.

Like a bare-faced enemy,
I am surrounded,
yet not quite succumbing,
to all these masks and artifice,
to all this trickery.

Nobody told me,
just how touchy it'd be,
to not compare myself,
to cosmetically "enhanced",
synthetically filtered,
targeted, and sponsored,
all these expertly posed,
tweaked and polished others.

With potions and spells,
conveniently placed there to lure us,
as they effortlessly appear,
within these square circles,
reflecting the shadows,
deep in black mirrors.

Nobody told me,
the force I would need,
not to judge or covet,
the lucky ones,
that don't have quite,
the same issues as me.

In reality,
it's a work, a deep process,
one that's very much,
still in progress.

Sometimes it's easier,
and sometimes,
I realise,
there's still much to be done,
to break down these feelings.

Born of hidden trauma, 
ignorantly,
we replicate, 
the same torment,
of a story unfolding,
long before we.

And nobody told me,
how hard it would be,
to watch other wild women,
do it successfully.

To see their liberty,
to witness them winning,
owning their naked,
honest,
God-given.

Womanly expressions,
Freely, wildly,
unapologetically.

Sometimes even
hairily, grotesquely,
yet always naturally.

Beautifully un-done,
and delicately strong,
orgasmically opinionated,
and mind-blowingly 
untethered.

Whilst nobody told me,
how very trying it would be,
to wonder why it is,
so devilishly complicated,
for the others, 
the ones, just like me.

That long to be free
of these artificial, 
toxic habits and
programmed desires.

Inverted acts that enrich,
all of these industries,
and please only the ones
that truly defy us.

Nobody told me,
how crazy I'd feel,
to detach the yokes,
laid down to control us.

Isn't it bizarre,
to be so aware,
and yet still, at times,
so carelessly clueless.

It's a journey.
really it is
a whole process.

For nobody told me
the battle it'd be,
to rid myself of these demons,
that carelessly creep in,
installed by others,
and nested securely.

Each day is a victory,
as I increasingly free myself,
from the tenacious villains,
previously anchored so comfortably.

Yours triumphantly,
Chacha @thesortinghouse

Reflections on ‘Nobody Told Me’: A Poem on Ageing and Self-Acceptance

There’s this unspoken anguish that comes in trying to age with honesty in a culture altogether obsessed with erasing time.

“When many women feel expected to remove their pubic hair because the dominant standard of beauty tells them to, we must consider where this standard is stemming from. Young girls are expected to appear older, more mature, and “sexy” while grown women are expected to appear youthful and hairless. We are reserving and prioritizing beauty for able bodies that appear young. When we prioritize bodies that appear young, it pushes the narrative that bodies are only attractive when they are young.” – Catherine Muir, STOP: The Sexualisation of Women & Girls

It’s even more troubling when we realise that this obsession with looking younger is likely rooted in the societal normalisation of pedophilia / hebephilia (The Neurobiology and Psychology of Pedophilia: Recent Advances and Challenges).

Obviously for some of us, that just feels wrong, even if we don’t have the words to describe it.

The Silent War

No one truly prepares us for the unspoken war of wanting to be accepted for who we are without artifice. Which is why young girls and women are primed from a young age to conform, and most of us do so as we age because it’s easier that way. Really, I just want to be free from these synthetic obligations entirely.

“Nobody Told Me” is a poem I wrote from that liminal space. The place between resistance and surrender. Between the sometimes clumsy attempts at raw self-love and the gnawing urge to pretend, to conform in order to “be acceptable”.

It’s a piece about the discomfort of waking up in a body that’s changing naturally through the seasons of life, while scrolling through a synthetic world that wants to hide ageing.

I know I’m not alone in this sentiment.
So many of us are tired of the pressure to be polished, filtered, enhanced, and restrained. We long for something messier, truer, something wild. Something human.

After all, isn’t it an honour to age? An honour to live through the arc of life as nature intended?

Whether within or without, there is a profound opportunity for learning, and healing, in the choice to honour life as it has developed naturally.

Nobody Told Me That It Would Lead to Transhumanism

Aside from disfigurations and major accidents that require some form of reconstruction, I’m of the belief that choosing the synthetic path to “augment” beyond the diversity that nature gave us is a cop-out. It’s anti-life in its synthetic homogeneity and a step closer on the path to accepting transhumanism. I think it is a missed opportunity for soul evolution.

Read more along these lines in my article ‘Can We Be Born in The Wrong Body’.

Studies show media representation has a measurable effect on women’s self-image, so when the media features mostly pre-pubescent girls, it becomes obvious why this malaise has installed itself for the majority of women. (The impact of advertising on women’s self-perception: a systematic review)

As more of us choose the path of honest ageing and doing so visibly, it will become easier for future generations to step light-heartedly towards their own natural honesty. Rather than unconsciously folding into technological “enhancements” that essentially destroy our connection to the life and soul of this natural plane.

What did you think of ‘Nobody Told Me’: A Poem on Ageing and Self-Acceptance?

If this poem resonated with you, feel free to share it or explore more of my reflections on self-love, ageing, and authenticity. Read my poem ‘If the Ocean Was a Woman’ next.

We’re not alone in this process and the more we speak it, the freer we become to accept it.

What are some of the challenges or wins you have come to in navigating your personal ageing journey? Have you succumbed to the pressure of conformity and regretted it? Do you not see what the fuss is? Have you already had surgery and cosmetic enhancement that changed your life, maybe you don’t see it the same way as I do? Let us know in the comments.

^{A Poem on Ageing: Nobody Told Me by Natacha Neveu for TheSortingHouse}
_{Featured image credit: Bekah Russom via Unsplash}