Five Days of Beauty: Day 4-Where I Find Beauty

As someone who was raised in small-town U.S.A., moved to Chicago for college, and now lives overseas, the things that have influenced my understanding of beauty are numerous and vast in kind. If I never lived in Chicago or was never exposed to India, my understanding of things found in those places or cultures would have been meaningless to me, and I would not have appreciated the fullness of beauty that is found in them. I still have much to learn, and I know there are more beautiful things to discover in many more places and cultures, but I am here now, and soaking in all I can.

Below I have listed things in which I find beauty for various reasons- some purely out of physical reasons, some for sentimental reasons, and some because of how I grew from them.

I find beauty in a sunset over the hills and fields of my homeland, the concrete jungle of downtown Chicago, and the Mugal handprint in the design of Rajasthan's great palaces.

I find beauty in the orderly lines of the corn in the fields of the Mid-west, the planned, gridline of the streets of Chicago, and the line of hills that surround my current city.

I find beauty in the sound of the horses' hooves clip-cloping down the street as it carries it's riders in a buggy behind it, the sound of the "L" train on its track carrying Chicagoans, and the music of the band in a marriage procession, with the groom atop an elephant, going to meet his bride.

I find beauty in my genetically deformed toes, my small, little apartment above my dear landlord's family, and the laughter I hear come from downstairs.

I find beauty in the flavors of good cheese, chocolate, and coffee.

I find beauty in smells that remind me of the past, people, and pumpkin.

I find beauty in well fitting clothing, shoes (remember, deformed toes... ya, those make it hard to find good shoes), and glasses.

I find beauty in the company of friends and family, and in being alone.

I find beauty in the sound of the ukulele, spoken word, and the sitar.

I find beauty in the comfort of jeans and a t-shirt, the simplicity of a little black dress, and the specificity in the draping of a sari.

What informs your understanding of beauty and where do you find it? Seriously, I want to know. Tell me in the comments below.
AJ

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Five Days of Beauty: Day 3-You are Full of Beauty

In yesterday’s post we talked about the definition of beauty and how each person’s understanding of beauty is somewhat subjective, because it has been informed by various influencers. 

However, today I want to talk about the one thing that we can objectively describe as beautiful, and that is the human being. 

Each person has been made in the image of the Creator God, the One who made the moon and stars, the sun and rain; the One who possesses all beauty and from which all beauty comes, the One who made all living things- He made man and women in his own image. This is true of nothing else. Because of this, our worth is connected to our Creator. If God is of great worth and beauty, then the human beings made in his image must have immense value and beauty as well. 

“There are no ordinary people. You have never met a mere mortal.” C.S. Lewis

Even the most obscure person is not ordinary in God’s eyes. The people you see everyday, even the ones whom you give little regard based on outward beauty (by your own understanding), have worth, for they have been made in the image of God, and possess an immense, incalculable amount of beauty.

As you go about your day today, take time to process the fact that each person you interact with has been made in the image of God. Don’t allow your cultural understanding of beauty to get in the way. Think about how your understanding of God’s beauty and therefore man’s beauty should inform your interaction with each individual person, whether your boss, spouse, co-worker, child, friend, homeless individual, or store employee. Each one has immense worth and should be treated accordingly. 

In the same vein, if you have forgotten your worth, or have beaten yourself up over not meeting society’s beauty standards, listen to this truth- you have been made in the image of God. You have worth and beauty as a human being that nothing else on earth can claim. Treat yourself accordingly.

AJ

*There is much more to be said about the Image of God. This is not an exhaustive explanation. 

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Five Days of Beauty: Day 2-What is Beauty?

BEAUTY: "the quality present in a thing or person that gives intense pleasure or deep satisfaction to the mind, 
whether arising from sensory manifestations (as shape, color, sound, taste, etc.), a meaningful design or 
pattern, or something else (as a personality in which high spiritual qualities are manifest)."

Beauty is universal. Naturally, we all have our likes and dislikes. We have been given the ability to enjoy things and not enjoy others. However, our minds and hearts have been cultivated by that which surrounds us, that which we have been exposed to, that which we value, and our understanding of what beauty is can be traced to those influences. Each culture has its own understanding of beauty, yet the definition is the same. Traditions, social norms, spiritual practices, and readily available materials (among many other things) all play a role in how our understanding of beauty is cultivated and formed. 

Coming from the west, I had a limited scope of what I found beautiful based on the limited exposure I had to the world. In the past two years as I have extended my circle of influencers and allowed myself to be exposed to things that are different from my "norm", I have seen my understanding of beauty broaden, particularly in music, visual art, food, and textiles/clothing design.

What is informing your understanding of beauty? Is it the traditions of your family or culture? Is it the thousands of photos you scroll through on Pinterest that you want to imitate? Are you choosing what you find beautiful, or are you being told what you should think is beautiful? What does your understanding of beauty tell you about what you value?

Honestly, a lot of what I find beauty in now my friends in the States will not have the same feelings about, and that is okay, but it doesn't make it any less beautiful to me. My encouragement to you is to step out of your normal influences and educate yourself on something new. Talk to people who are passionate about it. Ask questions. Open your eyes to see the beauty that is there. 

AJ 

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Five Days of Beauty: Day 1-Operation Find Beauty

I've gone back and forth so many times about what I want this blog to really be about. It started off as a travelogue of an American living abroad, because that is what made sense. I was, in fact, an American living abroad, but I didn't really know how much people actually cared or needed such a thing, and honestly, I didn't know how much I did either.

Then I thought about using it as a portfolio to share my creative work. I like to dabble in a lot of different kinds of creative mediums, and thought it might be fun to share my work with whomever found it interesting. But honestly, I kind of get board with myself, and my creative juices haven't really been flowing lately. 

But I liked the creative/arts idea, and got inspired by the beauty around me.

You see, I live in a culture where you have to be intentional to see beauty. The desert dust and climate of North India doesn't automatically fit one's typical idea of beauty (at least not to me...) and I have found myself battling to find beautiful things. About a year ago, I started using the hashtag "operationfindbeauty" to remind myself that there are beautiful things all around me if I just open my eyes and look past the dirt and trash. It helped and soon my instagram was full of beautiful things that I could revisit whenever I needed. 

"OperationFindBeauty" also helped me to broaden my scope of beauty. Before this project, my definition of beauty was many times synonymous with perfection and lined up with what I liked personally. There is nothing wrong with having a liking toward one thing over the next, but I learned that there is beauty in everything, and I needed to open my senses in order to be educated and embrace the beauty I don't yet know. 

For example, because of where I was raised, my ears are tuned to enjoy a western style of music. When I came to India, I had a hard time listening to eastern music, because to me, it sounded pitchy, screechy, and out of tune. Once I opened my mind and educated myself on the history and traditions of music in eastern cultures, I could see the beauty in it. Is it my favorite thing to listen to? No, but I can appreciate the beauty that is there. 

So what does that mean for the blog? Well, I want this corner of the internet to be a place where we can explore and celebrate beautiful things. Beauty, and our ability to experience it, is a gift, and I want to use it! I'll be posting all kinds of things to help us broaden our understanding of true beauty. I encourage you to email me or tag me on instagram in something that you find beautiful. You can find my social media links to the right.

Come back for more on our definition of beauty tomorrow. This is just day one, friends. 

AJ

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