She is Beauty

The world likes to tell us what beauty is.

It especially likes to tell us what a beautiful woman is; what she wears, what she eats and drinks, how she walks and talks, what her skin, face and eyes look like, how she poses in a photo. The list is endless. The world often makes beauty exhausting. I beg to differ. These things are not beauty instead they are style or fashion. Style and fashion change with the times, culture and geography. Beauty in itself is unchanging.

There is a lake I have visited for years. Every season it is beautiful. Some seasons it is green and lush and full of movement while other seasons it is surrounded by empty branches and stillness. Every season is beautiful. When I am there I feel the peace it brings as it grounds my soul. Beauty carries energy and peace at the same time.

I am tired of the noise of the world forcing its’ opinion of what beauty is. I need to shift my mind once again and remind myself what beauty is. Merriam-Webster defines beauty, lovely and grace…

beauty/noun

1: the quality or group of qualities in a person or thing that gives pleasure to the senses or the mind : LOVELINESS

lovely/adjective

1: delightful for beauty, harmony, or grace 

…

Beauty is lovely wrapped packaged. Imagine in front of you a large box with wrapped in a thick shiny colorful paper, you know the good stuff- not the stuff that tears at a whisper, and a wide ribbon wrapped around the box, topped with a big loopy bow. For a second you think, it is almost too pretty to unwrap so you pause and admire the outside for a minute but the gift is inside waiting for you. The inside is the thing, the end goal –what you are anticipating. The same gift can come in a paper bag and it is still the same gift. Some days a paper bag will do and other days, you want the full wrapping. I think this is a more accurate picture of beauty. We can appreciate the outside efforts and sometimes it looks extra good, but it is not the gift. It is not beauty. What matters is the inside.

This weekend I had the privilege of attending Mom’s Weekend and my son’s university which was filled with many activities but I’ll stick to the relevant ones. The first evening was spent with our “framily” (friends who are family) so it was guaranteed a good evening. We enjoy each other’s company anyplace which is comfortable for this introvert. The second night kicked off with hanging out in his apartment with one of his roommates and mom. We had some instant commonalities and it was an easy connect. We had many laughs and story sharing. Ty kept referring to the night as a giant cross-over episode. His two worlds colliding. We then traveled to a small house party where I met 4 more moms. I was the second mom on the scene and was greeted with a smile and charcuterie board. WIN-WIN. The students were happy to hang, sing songs, dance around and of course, as it is a Big 10 school in spring, watch basketball on the big screen. The next mom came in looking burdened. She pulled up a chair and the group encouraged her to share. The group had empathy, an unhurried ear and kind words for her. THIS was beauty. She had the courage to share and group had mercy and love to give. Nothing was solved but encouragement was given and she was able to let go of some of the burden and enjoy the night with her daughter and new friends. Beauty is authentic connection and acceptance. If you unwrap beauty, you find love at the core.

LEAD WITH LOVE

We were each from different parts of the city and ‘burbs. We were all different colors and cultures. We cheered for different teams. I’m sure we had different views on many different things but it did not matter. Each mom and student that walked in that apartment and saw love and gave love. It was mom’s being mom’s –enjoying time with their grown babes and giving love and grace, encouragement to their students and all they encountered. This is beauty.

It is time to step up our motherhood and pour it out freely to those we encounter. Slow down in order to be open with a listening ear. Throw hugs out there like parade candy. Laugh, dance, play, celebrate together regardless of all the things that separate us. This world needs us all to find the common ground and just love. Create more beauty. Not the faux ever-changing beauty that swipes before our eyes every day but instead true beauty full of harmony, mercy, grace, peace, kindness: LOVE.

Let’s all be able to walk into a room and say about each other;

She IS Beauty.