by Ellen Layug

Created on: April 19, 2008

Beauty is in the eye of the beholder, they say. And perfection, for many of us, is beautiful. So does that make imperfection an ugly or hideous thing to have? Not at all.

Naturally, all humans are born with physical flaws while inward imperfections are developed, I believe through experiences. Since physical imperfections are the ones being noticed first, some of us exert more effort, time and money to achieve what our society dictates as the perfect beauty. Thanks to science and high-end technology, we can now change the shape of our noses, we can make our lips fuller, our skin tone fairer or tanner, our waist smaller, thighs and arms slimmer, change the color of our hair etc. We change the parts of our body that we think are flaws to the eyes of others so much so we lose our unique, natural beauty and look like one of the clones of a mannequin that is plastically perfect.

It is sad that we refuse to see the beauty in the gifts that we were given. That we fail to understand that these flaws actually make us who we are. Instead, we change them to the human standards of perfection. It is even sadder that because we are so busy aiming for the superficial perfection, we have no time to address the real flaws, our inward imperfections that have bigger effects on our relationships. Such imperfections that once changed or overcome can make us truly beautiful, far more beautiful than having great skin, perfect nose, pouting lips and beautiful body which inevitably fades as we age.

Imperfection is normal and it is what keeps us human. It is what sets us apart from other creatures in the world. There is beauty behind every imperfections. And it is how we deal with our imperfections that determines how beautiful or ugly we are. Loving one's self and the flaws that comes with it is being truly beautiful. Sometimes, it is better to close our eyes and let our heart determine what imperfections we can live with and what needs to be overcome. For our heart can see beyond what our eyes cannot. As the Little Prince said, what is essential is invisible to our naked eye.

Learn more about this author, Ellen Layug.
Click here to send this author comments or questions.