I have never been a particular fan of Michael Jackson's music, only really liking a handful of his songs, but I have always admired his showmanship and ability to continue producing more music, in spite of his troubled private life.

Hearing the news of his untimely death was a shock to everybody.  Anybody under the age of 45 has grown up with his music which has covered 4 decades!  Love or hate his music, everybody has heard it and you can only admire his musical talent and stamina for producing so much.

As I was watching footage of his extraordinary life from child phenomenon to the King of Pop, I cannot help feeling sad that his life cannot have been a happy one.

Looking at the physical transformation from the happy smiling child Michael was when he first sang with his siblings to the sad, pinched and pale Michael of recent years, it amazes me what somebody will do to change their appearance to “conform” to an image they perceive as “the look”.

Plastic surgery, Botox and many other cosmetic surgical procedures are becoming more and more common place and are no longer prohibited to movie stars, pop singers and celebrities.  Ordinary women and men are resorting to the surgeon’s knife.  I find this a frightening trend and one that suggests that there is only one “look” that is beautiful.

By concentrating on the good bits and showing them to their best advantage, we can ignore the bad bits and nobody will notice.

Focusing on these “good” features will give you confidence to celebrate the body you have, without resorting to major surgery which carries risks that, in my opinion are not worth taking.

Michael Jackson didn't  focus on the good things in his life and in his appearance.  I do not believe that his unhappy life was made any better by his tranformation of his facial features.  His childhood difficulties and somewhat dramatic life will be debated for many years but for "ordinary" men and women  learning to love ourselves as we are, is not an impossible dream.