I don’t smile if I don’t wanna. Period.

I have a resting bawse face.

That’s my confession. I remember vividly writing this in a post that remained a draft years back and now, I’m accepting what my face does when I am lost in a reverie, concentrating on a piece of info or simply being in the moment.

Sometimes, in a world where we are taught to be ‘on’ or concerned about how we appear to the public, an unnecessary amount of self-consciousness gets triggered. In high school, I remember feeling like my face should at least look pleasant when I was just minding my own thing. I remember the struggle to do that to appear mild or neutral facially. Where does this need come from? It’s from our society and girls and women in particular are susceptible as they are often told to appear constantly 'lovely' on the outside.


Any intense facial states that subtly suggest a mild murderous intent must be done away to exude easy likability. But the thing is, the face of mine does what it does quite naturally. I have seen this myself whenever I catch my RBF in the mirror looking a few levels of intense usually induced by a delightful focused concentration. What I’m saying is, your RBF is yours to own. Only you know what’s going on in the space between the ears, so woman, please allow your face to do what it does in its most natural state. If you're pissed, wear the look, gladly!


My mother asked me one evening why did I look so sad (or intense) after consuming a couple of fried chicken bites and noodles. This was after a session of badminton so feeling like a smart-arse at that moment I responded by saying that my face was a weapon of manipulation. I could smile and trigger smiles. Or, I could just not and be left alone. Well, actually, that was not how I’d put it out exactly. I might have said that my neutral face can annihilate a conversation in an instant and cause people to behave because it’s so gangsta.


This brings me to the topic of why I am unable to do ‘vogue’ facial poses in my OOTD shoots. What I’m projecting by effort through my facial muscles can translate into a look that's only a bit full of rage. LOL! And that also explains why I’m not a professional model. I do admire women who can do the wistful look so very effortlessly fully understanding that it involves a mix of skills and genetics.


So, ladies, if you’re feeling like you’re alone with your RBFs, know that you are not and please accept your face as it is. There’s nothing wrong about looking serious when it’s naturally happening, so own it. I do like to cut out the top parts of my face when I share photos here because well, I just like it that way. A few people has asked why, so the mystery has now unraveled! Of course, sometimes, it's just for practical reasons such as strong eye bags, half-opened eyeballs or that the hair is looking cray-cray. Plus, I don't want to be so in-your-face too much!

Wearing:black sleeveless tank - cotton on / / abstract palazzo pants - thrifted / / beige sandals - the mall / / venue - local museum roadside


In a nutshell, my RBF and I shall remain besties because we go way back. What about you? How has having a RBF influenced your life? I take pleasure in reading your thoughts, so please feel free to go nuts with them!

A Rumi quote to end this post:

"What comes, will go. What is found, will be lost again. But what you are is beyond coming and going and beyond description."

A FuzzyMouldy Lenscape