How Many Chins?

The following is one of four pieces I wrote for a class a few years ago. The age has changed but all else remains the same.(smiley face)….This was for a class called “Gender and Body Image,” and was very enlightening. We women are sure tough on ourselves. This story pays homage to that which many of us have.


When I was growing up I had one great chin. It was sculpted and had a nice smile above it, with a couple of dimples at the cheek. As I have aged, I have noticed a couple of unexpected things.

Where there was once a nice little chin, there are now two of them. My chin grew a twin! How did this happen and why didn’t I notice? I think the culprit is my profile, which is the part that hides from my inspection of the face. This sideways silhouette is where others see the chin, and now its twin buddy, but I hadn’t kept tabs of my side view much. So when I looked one day, it was such a surprise to see more face than I used to have. Why hadn’t I been told?

This frightening experience led me to pull my chin up and push it out, at the same time, so that it would group as a single unit. Advice came fast and furious as my friends helped me cope, by giving advice on how to make it not show. I was told that pictures looked better if you did that up and out thing, but really I just looked like someone with a neck and face being stretched like a chicken. Many of my friends have suffered this terrible fate also. We have discussed plastic surgery, but are afraid we might end up looking like those Hollywood types who go under the knife. They didn’t improve their looks, and seem very chicken like and rather scary looking. Plus, surgery does seem a bit extreme for something that isn’t hurting anything.

My chin cannot be decorated like my ears, or have a flattering wardrobe which can disguise perceived flaws. It is a part of the face where makeup isn’t necessary. The chin just sits there and acts like a chin. Some might call it a jowl, but that is really an ugly word. Be it a jowl, chin, or jaw, it is an integral part of our body and face. Without its existence we would not be able to chew, speak, or maybe even smile. A chin is always front and center and is probably more difficult for me to get used to, as opposed to my butt, which hides out behind me. However, I have a lively face and wide smile, with white teeth, so the hope lives that the chin plus counterpart will be lost in all of the other animations found within my visage.

An extra chin could be a real improvement in accommodating all the needs of the face. Where would my smile be without the protuberance below its bottom lip? Perhaps it is time for me to embrace my silhouette and gruesome twosome, and remind myself that I am fortunate to be getting old enough to have this experience. Not everyone has to pleasure to reach 55-years of age and have something to smile about, with said chin helping out.

Copyright Theresa Huber 2006