I love the beach and everything about it. I love the feeling of the sun on my skin, the sand between my toes, the sound of the waves and the droplets of sweat that I feel on my face after a hot day.
The fact that I get really dark skin because of my island-loving ways never really bothered me that much back in the day. In fact, I think it bothered other people more than it bothered me. Every time I came home after a beach trip, my friends would comment on how dark I’ve gotten as if it was a bad thing. It probably wasn’t so bothersome back in the day because I would go to the beach maybe once or twice a year.
Now that traveling and going to the beach is part of my job, however, I find myself at the beach more often than not – and, well, you have to admit: there is a limit to how dark a person’s skin should get before it starts looking… awkward. As such, I’ve simply become more conscious of the skin care products that I use when I’m at the beach. (My current favorite is Beach Hut’s Max 100 lotion, which has a high SPF and can help me maintain a pretty and ‘mas bagay sa akin‘ morena skin tone as opposed to an extremely dark one, even after prolonged sun exposure.) Plus, it helps prevent skin cancer, which is what SPF has always really been about for me ever since.
Maybe I don’t care because I grew up abroad where everyone would lie down in the sun to tan whenever they could and really appreciated the beauty of dark skin. Either way, though, I find it absurd that some of my friends who absolutely love the beach actually limit the amount of time they spend in the sun or avoid the sun altogether to ensure that they don’t get dark.
Of course, if you truly think that fairer skin is more beautiful, then that’s another story. However, if you are merely doing it to avoid other people’s comments or to please other people, please don’t.
Instead, embrace your morena skin. Enjoy your beach trips. Soak up the sun. Swim in the waves. Live in the heat. Take in every moment and just be happy. You deserve to relish and make the most of every moment and every experience that comes your way this summer and beyond. Cheers to us!
Naturally, you shouldn’t forget to stay safe, though; so don’t forget to always bring sunblock! Check out this video on the first ever sunblock sent into outer space:
