Define Beautiful

I came across a new-to-me blog yesterday, The Bobby Pin.  Then I discovered her project Define Beautiful.  The posts I read were encouraging, interesting, and very beautiful.  I thought about what is beautiful to me, what makes me feel beautiful and instantly I was aware of how brave I felt these women were to write about beauty, especially their own beauty.  I think we have such a strange culture, we crave beauty, we admire beautiful people, but we aren't encouraged to believe in our own beauty.  If a woman walks into a room and owns her beauty she is considered in a negative light.  Can you imagine someone saying, "I am so beautiful today".  But wouldn't that be a wonderful thing? 

As with most things, having children, or caring deeply for youth gives a different perspective.  Wouldn't I love to hear my daughter say "Mom, I am so thankful I am strong, smart, kind, and beautiful."  She will have a difficult time believing those things about herself if I don't show her that I believe those things about myself.

So... how do I Define Beautiful?
I believe beauty comes from cofidence.  Confidence in myself, confidence in my abilities, confidence in my understanding that it's okay to not be perfect (a work in progress).  When I love myself for where I am in my journey I feel beautiful. 

When I am present with my children, really present, not just in the same room, I find that beauty surrounds me.  The simple act of being with a child, doing what they want to do, catching a glimps of their growth is beautiful.  And that beauty flows into me so easily.  It's a nicer place to be than ignoring them to clean the floor.  But balance is beautiful too, and a clean house is important to me.

When I see the amazing world we live in, without the fog of distraction, I am always in awe of it's beauty.  A gray and rainy day is as beautiful to me as a clear sunny morning.  To be honest it's the change that I find beautiful, to many days of either looses it's appeal to me.

I have always surrounded myself with beautiful people.  It's obvious for the world to see how beautiful they are, but most people don't get to see their real beauty.  It's true, my friends are even more beautiful on the inside.  They are amazing friends, our time is filled with laughter and with tears.  I think the beauty of these friends comes from the deep trust and authenicity of each friendship.  I have high standards for friendship, my early friendships set the bar very high.

My marraige is the most beautiful relationship I have.  Words are insufficient to describe how blessed I am.  God is good and I am thankful.

And not unimportant, but definitely at the end of my list is being pretty.  I think it's beautiful to feel pretty.  I have found that just taking the time to pick clothes that fit well, add a bit of makeup, and something sparkly does a lot for making me feel pretty... I think I should say "making me see that I am pretty".  And that is a beautiful thing that I hope my children will see in themselves and others.

I wonder how my daughter will Define Beauty, I hope she will find it in herself as well as her world.

                                                   Natalie 3 1/2 years... so beautiful.