Rest in Peace

OK, it's official: Terri Schiavo has died.

The TV news showed more "before" photos of her than I had ever seen previously. It's sad to see how happy, friendly and lively she looked before the effects of an eating disorder robbed her of life as she knew it. She looked like the kind of person any of us might want to know. Maybe I understand a little better now why her parents and blood relatives were so deeply in denial about the medical facts of her case. I hope they can also find peace.

One photo I hope to never see again is the one where someone [clearly from her parents' camp] smeared garish red lipstick on Terri in an obvious attempt to make her look...normal (for lack of a better word). That photo offended me deeply every time I saw it, and TV news trotted it out a lot. I believe in the tranformative power of make-up, but even the best cosmetics in the world can't transform someone in a permanent vegetative state into their former self.

I hope that somewhere out there, at least one of those misguided girls who worship the emaciated thinness of celebrities like Mary Kate and Ashley Olson realize the potential dangers of starving to be thin, and decide to start eating properly.