EDITOR’S LETTER
MY RESTING FACE is not a smiley one. It’s a fact I grew accustomed to long ago. I’m not an unhappy person. But every now and again, on the street, in an airport, riding an elevator, I’m reminded, usually by a complete stranger, that I should “smile”. “Cheer up.” “It can’t be all that bad.” The person requesting the readjustment of my facial features is typically male (there is a myriad of essays penned about why that is) and my typical reaction is to knit my eyebrows tighter in annoyance and add a stomp to my step. I don’t think I’m alone. No-one likes being told to smile on command.
What the under-utilised corners of my mouth do respond to, however, is a spontaneous moment of genuine connection. A shared encounter with the parent of an excited toddler on the train, a stealthy raised eyebrow from a workmate, a sweet just-because text that breaks me away from my mile-a-minute thoughts and reminds me that life doesn’t always have to be so serious.
It’s a thought echoed by author Jill Stark in our mental health portfolio (p74). Stark says she “changed my perspective from the happy-ever-after to the happy-inbetween” after her breakdown in 2014. “The little moments of joy are what life is all about.” A quick whip around the office turns up a range of ideas about what constitutes smile-inducing joy, from a Lizzo song and new Celine loafers to dog bottoms that wiggle as they walk, sharing meals with friends and ocean swims. Taking time to appreciate the small things, allowing in a little sliver of light, just checking in with yourself every now
and again, has to be the ultimate in self-care. And the best part is, it gets better with practice.
It’s heartening to hear that even our cover star Elle Fanning, a self-confessed “animated, excited human”, is conscious of making things special, despite having spent almost two decades in the movie business by the age of 21. “I always try to hold on to that – each moment is so amazing, and you never know if it’s going to be taken away from you,” she says in our profile on p90. With Fanning’s skyrocketing status and reputation as the nicest person in Hollywood (at least that is what we have crowned her after spending a day with her on set in LA), it doesn’t look like anything will be taken away any time soon.
These days, when I do smile, my whole face gets involved. The deepening laugh lines around my mouth. The creases that frame my eyes. The fine crinkles either side of my nose. It’s an all-in affair that I felt reassured about after reading Jennifer George’s piece, “The Rise Of The Bespoke Face” (p146). Because she’s right when she hails the best sort of beauty as a face not curated by doctors, but by the life you have lived.
I hope that with almost every page in this issue, we’ve given you something to smile about, whether it’s from ear to ear or purely on the inside. And when you’re done, I hope you share it with a friend. Enjoy!
“THE IDEAS FOR WHAT CONSTITUTES JOY RANGED from A LIZZO SONG to DOG BOTTOMS that WIGGLE AS THEY WALK”