What Is Beauty

What Is Beauty?

They say beauty is in the eye of the beholder, but what does that really mean? When you look at a painting either you like it or you do not. If you buy it when you first look at it something might strike you that you think is beautiful. As time goes on and you see it every day, and the reason you like it fades into oblivion. If you look at it trying to get a deeper meaning wondering what the artist was trying to convey you might enjoy it for a longer period of time, but it is hard to retain the same appreciation that your first impression gave you.
Beauty in people can be the same thing. At first you might find a physical attraction to someone, but as time goes on the exterior seems to blend into the personality until the physical beauty can no longer be seen alone without the personality coming through. Some people have the ability to see the inner beauty immediately, not caring about the physical aspects. Others look first at the physical attraction before exploring what is below the surface.
I know that I am the type of person that sees the physical beauty first, and then when the inner strength, heart, and what we call personality shines through, I no longer see the physical beauty anymore, only the blend of the inner and outer beauty.
Think about some of your favorite actors and actresses, and the first time you saw them. If they were extremely attractive initially, how do you see them now? Has your view changed since you have seen their movies? What about things you read about their life, or have you had the opportunity to see the same individuals in a setting that was not staged, such as a reality show. Has this changed the way you see them? After these experiences can you still see them in the same light as when you first saw them? I do not think so.
Maybe it is just me, but the exterior beauty loses the hold it had when the inner beauty come through, and I can never look at them in the same way again, unless I see a photo of them. In a photo you are only looking at the exterior of someone not his or her inner beauty, and then you can see the difference again. This is only my observation about beauty. You may agree, or disagree, but the final decision on beauty is up to you.

Outer beauty might be what attracts you, but the inner beauty is what keeps you.

Robert L. Murdoch

02/03/09