Sunday, March 25, 2012

What Is Beauty?

I read in the paper today that eight people were asked what beauty was to them; and they came up with completely different answers from each other.  I thought to pose the same question to you all - as my followers - to see what I'd get from you.  Of course, I'll let you in on what I think beauty is as well.
To me, this whole world we live in is an example of beauty.  From the smallest of creatures to the largest of trees, mammals to the dullest-looking things we can find in our houses, everything has a certain beauty about it.
Being an artist and a writer, I have always seen the world from a different perspective and have observed it in such a way that the way I photograph it, the way I paint it, the way I write about it wouldn't be the same to others.  There's the small things like Lady-Beatles which come in all kinds of colours and sizes.  I love these things, they stand out on the green blades of grass in my back garden and look gorgeous as they run along the large leaves of the Frangipanni however, they look like any other winged bug flying through the air while in flight.  Bumblebees are the same.  I love their oversized bodies, their droning sound as they come along - as though they're really working those wings in top gear!  And really they are!  Poor little critters aren't really supposed to be able to fly seeing how fat they are; and yet there they are buzzin' away.  What I love about them the most is that they seem to just hover in front of us as thought to tell us off in their own way, then fly off looking half-drunk.  I got one inside my house once and he hovered at the window waiting for me to help him outside.  And once I did get him outside, he was gone with the wind currents without any fuss... now, you wouldn't get that from any other insect.
Beauty in this world is far and wide as well.  I've traveled a bit in my life and seen many things.  There's been buildings that have been around for hundreds and thousands of years which are still standing which I've been to see.  One of these is Stonehenge.  Now, some people would think it's not much to look at - seeing nobody of the public is allowed near it - but when I saw it in the Summer of 1997, I was in love with its beauty.  the gorgeous white/grey against the stark blue sky and the evenness of the green plains around it.  My imagination played around this very monument, taking away the cars on the highway, the other modern facilities that had been built and the other people... my mind took me back to the times of the pagan ceremonies and how this place was used all those times ago.  Yes, this was how I found this place's beauty.  And I do have a photo of me with it in the background.
However, beauty - in general - can mean anything.  Personally, I find beauty in everything around me from music, the colours I mix on the palate, to the food I cook for dinner to the colours of my bird's feathers while she preens herself to her song.  My garden is beautiful - even though sometimes it's full of weeds.  I see its potential and work on it all the time with what little money I have.  I mow the lawn and smell that wonderful scent that freshly cut lawn puts off - which takes me back to primary school - and I see what cleaning up the edges of the yard does, pulling out the long grasses around the pots and making sure the plants are all watered and cared for.
There's beauty in books.  I love collecting them and reading them.  I love looking for the First Editions and reading them.  I adore the new books and treasure the old books that may not in print anymore.  However, it's when I find one that I have been hunting for years that I feel relief; a kind of happiness that I have found one of the books I no longer have to look for and then I add it to my collection; and that's a great feeling.
So, what is beauty to you?  Is it the world around us today?  Or is it more skin deep?  Leave a comment and let us know.  Until my next post, take care, keep warm and safe and remember, I'm always here.  

1 comment:

  1. thinks beauty means: the way our planet is created, what talent people have and your heart to others.

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