Preteen Cancer Patient's Makeup Tutorials Will Warm Your Heart

Videos about how to apply makeup aren't typically going to win any Pulitzers, raise IQ points, or breed good will among mankind. That's because most makeup tutorials aren't done by Talia Joy Castellano -- a 12-year-old who's effervescent, knowledgeable, articulate … and a cancer patient.

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Yes, in the capable hands of Talia, who lost her hair to chemo in 2007, lessons about smokey eyeshadow, foundation application, or proper brush techniques are anything but inane. She manages to impart her knowledge in a sage-yet-un-preachy way and is at once endearing and commanding of respect.

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Of course, when you're 12, have had cancer for five years, and have recently learned that there are two more types of the disease floating around in your bone marrow, you ponder more important things than makeup. You think about life and your journey and what it all means. And in contemplating these things, Talia has become wise beyond her years -- and is only too happy to share bits of her heart, soul, and wisdom with every stroke of the mascara brush.

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Check out her YouTube channel here -- whether or not you need help in the eyeshadow department.

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