CUENCA ~ A FOUNTAIN OF YOUTH?

The great Ponce de Leon would’ve been envious.

As I pass along Cuenca’s vibrant city streets, I find myself taking a good long look at its people. I see older indigenous women, their long dark double braids trailing down, not a single gray hair among them.  I see elegantly dressed, sophisticated men and women, physically fit and with soft, well-preserved complexions. People of all ages exercise regularly in local parks and power walk along its rivers. I wonder. Is there a secret to their apparent youthful vitality?

Maybe it’s genetics. Or diet. Or the naturally active and less stressed lifestyle. Heck. Maybe it’s just all in their attitude.

Funny thing, that. I’m seeing the same traits in fellow ex-pats. Generally the people who have emigrated here tend to be leaner, fit, and consciously healthy. I haven’t seen an obese one among them. And gray hair? Okay, maybe in the handsome, gracefully-aging men. We women would probably fess up to a less natural way of dealing with that, but that’s okay. And youthful faces? You bet.

Again, I ask myself why. Genetics? Diet? Active and less stressed lifestyles? Attitude?

Yep, probably all of those. But for some, there’s yet one more secret tool in their toolbox. Cosmetic surgery.

Oh, the thought of it! Not so long ago the very idea conjured up a visceral, negative reaction within. It’s Vanity!  Insecurity!  Deception!  I would think. But that’s when I had the luxury of youth on my side. Before I looked in the mirror and saw my eyes beginning to change and noticed the deep furrowed lines running straight across my forehead. Before my once relatively "cute" body started to betray me.

What I’ve learned is that Cuenca is fast-becoming a significant destination for affordable, high quality surgery. I know this because it seems to be a pretty common topic of conversation here. I stand at parties, knowing that many of those beautiful, unlined faces have had a little boost. And for the first time, I get it. Why wouldn’t someone want their outside appearance to match their youthfulness inside? Is it really so bad?

Well, who knows? Maybe I’ll find the need at some point to tap into that easily accessible Fountain of Youth some day. Or maybe not. For now I’m going to see how far this not-always-so-gracefully aging face and body will take me. It’s a wonderful thing to know there'll always be options, though!

Clearly, I'm learning that aging is definitely not always easy. What do you think?