Seek Beauty

"Beauty appears to all in the same way, but is silent to one and speaks to another....They understand it who compare the voice received on the outside with the truth that lies within." ~ The Confessions of St. Augustine (adapted)

Beauty...we all have the opportunity to see it but we don't always. I have been thinking lately a lot about beauty. This morning as I was driving to an early meeting I saw something that distracted me again and had to remind myself to keep driving so that I would not be too late for the meeting. Sometimes I just want to soak beauty in.

I am part crow, I joke. I like shiny, sparkly things. I remember one summer hiking through the forest on an island off the mainland of British Columbia when a particle of sap that resembled a diamond caught my eye. I stood there for a moment, marveling. How is it that something so minute could capture me? My friend who was ahead of me had either missed it or ignored it.

A good friend of mine and I used to hike with two men. They would walk and not talk, waiting for us to catch up. My friend and I would meander, examining ferns, gazing at flowers, beholding beauty at each step. We would come upon our men folk who I am sure embraced beauty in their own way and we would laugh at each other and how we arrived at the same spot.

I think there is something beautiful too about that gift of knowing the truth that lies within. I remember one of those hikes where the men waited for us by the rushing waters. I arrived and in that moment knew that I was blessed beyond measure by these three people. The beauty was not just in the scenery around us, but in the absolute comfort and love held in these relationships.

Seek beauty. Find truth. Trust the voice.

Peace,

Suzanne