The above quote much sums up my previous post about Fake Your Face Video Project (click the link for info and how to contribute) by Emily and Imaan.
Truth be told, there was a time I was impressionable enough to be dictated upon by the media. I used to be really conscious about every little thing that was “wrong” with my face. At times I would wish they could get fixed with magic (for sharp objects make me uncomfortable). Being traumatized by celebrity cosmetic surgery disasters helped shove that idea out of my head.
That aside, just getting over myself and shifting focus to other people and talking to them also broke the mold of my ideas about beauty.
People whose looks so many others look up to and consider “perfect” — I found out that even they can be incredibly insecure and unhappy with their appearance. Maybe it’s just something we all go through. I’ve even learned that sometimes the feature I think is most attractive on a person, is the very thing that they don’t like about themselves. So if you’re feeling ugly, doesn’t necessarily mean that other people see you as such. They could even be thinking the opposite.
There are a couple of people I consider some of the most beautiful individuals I’ve ever seen. They’re not supermodels or anything like that. And what I love about them are their quirks: his eyebags and dark circles that emphasize his soulful eyes, the way her lips look when the lipstick has been partially smudged off, his upturned nostrils, her goofy smile and uneven teeth, his unruly and expressive eyebrows, the way her legs look like her kicks would make guys cry, the way he talks through only one side of his mouth.
Some of you are probably laughing at me, but those are honestly the traits I find impossibly attractive and endearing on those people. It might sound weird but that kinda made me feel that maybe someone would also appreciate my peculiar features the same way. That was enough for a little boost of confidence, and reassurance that I’m fine just the way I am.
Source: fullpaidjustice
My signed copies of Rebus and my favorite Umbrella Academy cover by James Jean. I keep staring at the drawing he added on Rebus. His lines are always so lovely.
It’s hard to process that it’s been two years since James Jean’s last visit to Manila. So much had changed since then, but hearing that he was coming here again pretty much had the same effect on me.
Yesterday I attended his artist talk in Ateneo. It was such an amazing, inspiring day. A pleasant surprise came in a form of an old friend come home to visit from studying in SVA. I managed to catch up with her and learn a bit about what it’s like over there. I also met a lot of wonderful new people while waiting for the talk to start. (Which was a while because I was actually really early this time.) It was really cool how we all seemed to ride on the same wavelengths and just immediately talked about so many things, starting with telling each other a bit about ourselves and our day to day lives. As the locally-based art student/freelance artist of the lot, I feel like I was the least interesting one, hahah. It was really fascinating hearing about the lives of med students and law students who are really into art and create some of their own. We even did a random doodle collab while waiting.
When the staff opened the auditorium doors and said we could go in, our bunch ran for the front. I got front row center! Hahaha! AWW YEAH SUPER CREEPER SEAT. I promised my friends who were abroad or simply unable to attend the talk that I’d record it on video for them, and that I did. I hope Mr. Jean was not entirely creeped out by me.
James Jean’s artist talk was again, awe-inspiring. He was down-to-earth, witty, and modestly but remarkably eloquent. I apologize that I’m unable to describe this part of the day in more detail but really, my words are not enough. Dear reader, I wish you could have been there.
On a side note, I nearly dropped my camera when James started talking about working with Gerard Way for The Black Parade. A certain few of you are probably aware of why I look up to Gerard as a person. I figured that album art might come in as part of the talk but I didn’t see it coming at the moment that it did and was therefore deprived of the opportunity to brace my feelings. Hearing an artist I hold in such high regard talk about (however candidly) working with another person I greatly admire made my heart jump a little.
I would like to add that I am rather proud of myself for not being a verbally incapacitated idiot like during his last visit when I wasn’t able to say anything substantial to him. During the Q&A portion I worked up the guts to ask the questions I had in mind, which he answered extensively and articulately. Earlier during the talk, he had mentioned how he was intimidated by comic book artists who could draw so consistently and when he tried drawing the characters for his Fables covers, they would never come out the same and his style kept changing. After thanking him for answering my questions and having a little conversation with me, I told him that for what it’s worth, I think the way his covers looked so different all the time was what made them so beautiful. It might no longer be relevant to his fine art work now, but I was just really happy to be able to tell him that.
While he signed my books I thanked him again for coming back and doing another talk; he said a lot of things I just really needed to hear so I was extremely grateful. And somehow he remembered I was first in line that day, hahah.
Up to now I’m still beaming from the memory of that whole day. I can’t wait to work on my paintings again.
Source: behindinfinity
I encourage everyone to watch this video of quotes from Gerard, whether you like My Chemical Romance or not. This is why they are my heroes.
It’s for everyone who’s ever felt depressed
or hurt
or rejected
or treated like an outsider
for being different.
Some of Gerard’s words from the video:
● Nothing is worth hurting yourself over. NOTHING is worth taking your life over.
● The difference we wanna make is, number one, to make these kids know that they’re not alone, that they’re actually not that messed up and that they can do whatever they want… And really just to get people to get over their stuff so they can live.
● It’s more important to keep yourself alive, there’s nothing worth even hurting yourself over… It’s normal, it’s completely normal to be depressed.
● I mean, we started this band thinking the world was extremely ugly. And I think now we realize that it’s more beautiful than we thought.
● So if anything, you can take it from a guy and his band who used to think everything was shit. And we’ve found that it’s not.
And from me:
You are never, ever alone. There are people out there who will understand you. You just have to reach out. Don’t shut yourself out, don’t take it out on other people by hurting them, and definitely never take your own life. You just have to keep living, and be kind, and be yourself — and you’ll find that despite how terrible the world can be, it can be really beautiful too.
(Source: fuckyeahmcrquotes)
Open up your heart. You might get hurt along the way because it’s a fact of life that bad people exist, but eventually you’ll find at least one true friend who will make it all worth it.
As I’ve said before: It’s okay to be you. It’s okay to be weird.
Other people’s opinion of you shouldn’t matter. Don’t miss out on opportunities to do things you love just because you don’t want other people saying mean things about you.
It’s your life and your time, and it’s YOU who has to live with the consequences of your decisions so make them for yourself. You should always strive to make yourself happy over all others.
(Source: fuckyeahgerardquotes)
The fine print on the above quote is that you should also be able to differentiate when people are just giving you shit to bring you down, or if people who actually care about you are trying to give you advice to be a better person. You don’t give your friends the middle finger. You work on issues together. Sometimes it can hurt to hear what you’ve been doing wrong, but real friends stab each other at the front, and with the best and purest of intentions.
You will find people out there who will love you for who you are. They will accept your imperfections, your shortcomings, your mistakes.
Be yourself and be kind. Things will get better. They did for us, and they can for you.
Some people seem to see me and my friends as a group of happy-go-lucky miscreants without a care in the world.
But I think the reason my friends are so kind, and the reason we embrace having fun so much is that we know all too well what it’s like to be hurt, and what it’s like to be depressed. We’ve been there. Some of us are still dealing with it. Our lives are far from perfect, we’re still human and make our share of mistakes, and we continue to work on ourselves one day at a time. Life doesn’t have to be perfect for it to be beautiful.
And the reason I share the things we do with you guys is to remind you to laugh, and to give hope to those who need it that you can make things better.
A lot of you have come to know me through my dA account, and through my dA journal posts particularly. One of the reasons I started blogging was just to remind myself of the things I have to be thankful for — the wonderful people in my life, and how much our silly adventures make me smile and laugh, and how they make life worth living. I needed that to look back on whenever I’d feel teetering on the edge of depression. Something that came as an unexpected blessing was how I received letters from people saying how somehow I had saved them. That my friends and I had given them something to believe in.
To hear that is more than I could have ever hoped to get in return for blogging. On behalf of my friends, I’d also like to say THANK YOU to you guys who have stuck with us and believed in us and inspired us to be better human beings. Your faith means more to us than you know.
(Source: fuckyeahgerardquotes)
If you think I might be able to help you with something related to this post, send me a message. (You can ask anonymously, or I can answer privately if you request it.) It takes me a while to reply sometimes, but I will do my best.
For what it’s worth, I’m here for you.
xoxo
Jin
(via geraardvark)
My name is Jin. I'm a freelance painter, illustrator and photographer from the Philippines. 
