Red pens are never used for writing, only correcting your mistakes. If you dye your hair red it will fade away faster than any other color. Stop signs and other warnings come in red, making sure you stay alert and keep your distance. And if you want to get a tattoo with red ink, you had better do your research. It is the most likely color to cause an allergic reaction once it is under your skin. It creates painful scabs and takes much longer to heal than any other color. And blood, which runs blue in your body turns red when it hits the oxygen in the air. And that is when you know something has gone wrong.
And yet no one can deny its magnetic power. Red grabs your attention like nothing else.
All the other girls at my job wear makeup around their eyes. Between all my fumbling with glasses and contacts I always felt like my eyes were a difficult spot to emphasize. I love my bright green eyes but I'd rather make sure I can see clearly out of them instead of covering them with itchy eye shadow.
That was when I decided to wear lipstick. But not just any color. I wanted to wear red.
Originally, most of my friends thought it was an odd choice. I rarely wear anything even as simple as foundation. My nonchalant attitude towards makeup is most often summed up as an odd combination of laziness and confidence. I am too lazy to spend much time on it but I am also lucky enough to feel confident without it. I just never felt like I had to "put on a face" in any sense.
Besides, I love the way the sun and breeze feel against my skin. Makeup makes most girls feel pretty but I just want to feel. Nothing is more beautiful than that.
But red lipstick is different. I never felt like it made me more beautiful. It was more like it was harnessing a power that was already there. I've got a strong voice and I love to talk. It just seemed natural to emphasize my mouth. That deep red slides across my lips and I press them together as I look into the mirror. This was the way it was meant to be.
When I go swing dancing I get all dressed up but never wear any makeup except the red lipstick. I like to dance fast, feel the pace of the music, and just let my body work. By the end of the night I am breathing heavy and sweating, reminding me that my body is a beautiful machine. If I had worn makeup it would be gone by now anyway. But the red remains.
I like the way red lipstick reminds me of pin up girls. That voluptuous kind of sexy that held it's own as a woman and knew that was more than enough. The kind of sexy that is synonymous with curves and attitude. The kind of sexy that retains a strong mind and power of will. Confidence has a color and that color is red.
One day at work a group of rowdy young men came in. One asked me for a cup of coffee and smirked at me as he said "I like your lipstick, it's very sassy."
I turned around and smirked right back at him. "It's not lipstick, it is the blood of my enemies."
Red is a color you don't mess with unless you know how to handle it. I'm tougher than most, but most like to learn that the hard way.
I move fast, always busy and burning with determination. I have to change and create. A primal force of nature that gives as much as it consumes. This fire runs hot but I have always been comfortable being in the red.
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