by Kayleen Proffer

Created on: April 20, 2009

There is a phrase that comes to mind when I think about this question, and that is this "beauty is in the eye of the beholder." As each of us looks out at the world, our view is skewed by our own experiences, some good some bad, but each experience makes us the people we have become. Beauty, in the circumstantial form, is merely physical. That physical form can be a person, or even an object (i.e. painting, statue, or a beautiful woman). Regardless of what the subject of your view is, the way you are viewing it is just circumstantial.

We find it impossible to know what the story is behind it, unless we find the time to uncover the true beauty in the history of the object or the personality and strength of the person. Without truly knowing them, you cannot possibly know the true beauty that they carry with them. You may observe a beautiful woman as she passes and comment on her beauty, and the person you are speaking to may not see it at all. We all have different eyes through which we see the world. If we did not, there would be no diversity and we would all be the same.

Taking the time to process the reality of beauty beyond the mere physical preconception does take more than just a glance, it takes time and effort. Along with a desire to know true beauty. When it comes to internal and external beauty, external beauty is insubstantial. When she goes home, removes her makeup and her fancy clothes, and puts on a pair of pajamas and climbs into bed is she still more beautiful than the woman that took care of you your entire life or the woman who cares for your children?

My point is this, before you determine the beauty of the woman you are looking at, consider her life. Think about the ways she got to where she is. Look harder at the woman trying hard to care for her three year old who is throwing a fit in the store and annoying you with his tantrum and screams, look more closely at the woman pushing her elderly grandmother in the wheelchair because she can no longer care for herself. The beauty in the world is not just in what you see, but also in how you use your eyes to begin with.

Just think about for a moment the beauty that is in the world, the sky at night, the sunset on the lake, these things aren't changeable. They don't primp for you, they don't ask anything from you, not attention nor affection, nor adoration. However, we attribute these things with the title of beautiful.

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