What, Where & How?

Beauty, love, meaning, purpose . . . all powerful nouns; all equally deserving of attention and respect. Especially now that I have come to realize the importance of making sense of it all and finding my place in the chaos.

“Beauty is in the eye of the beholder.”

Margaret Wolfe Hungerford (née Hamilton) is widely credited with coining the saying in its current form. Feb 1, 2022.

“The soul that sees beauty may sometimes walk alone.” ~ Johann Wolfgang von Goethe

Where to Look For Beauty

It seems to me that searching for beauty in all things needs to become more of a priority for some. That is not to say that one should be looking for beauty in a bowl of cereal or the trash can. I’m referring to the details in nature and the creativity that is produced by people all around us.

Yesterday I woke up and set a goal for the day. I vowed to be present as much as possible (easier said than done) and look for beauty in at least one person, place, or thing, each hour. I took notes on what I found:

• As the sun came up and entered my living room, I noticed the silhouettes of the trees dancing on my dining room wall; trees growing on my street.
• I saw an amazing red bird I have never seen before on the way to the gym (not great with bird names, I should have uploaded a bird app).
• On my way to the grocery store I noticed a woman sitting with a child on a bench. The child put her head in the woman´s lap and the woman smiled.
• I noticed the ugly trash cans which hang on posts on our streets have been replaced with cleaner, more attractive receptacles.
• During the day I looked directly at Paco´s eyes and noticed a green I had not seen before.
• I noticed a color in my sofa; it’s a sky blue that makes the colors around it bolder.
• My favorite beautiful thing is the lemon tree below. It’s in a public place, so you can just pick lemons when you need them and I do. They are absolutely perfect.

Just a few of the beautiful things I noticed in the mundane as my day progressed. It felt as if each time the idea of beauty entered my consciousness, I became a bit happier and more grateful. It seems so hokey when I put it in writing, but it’s the small things that add up to a more enlightened state of mind.

No chemical substances were involved in the aforementioned discoveries.

Does it Matter Who Else Sees it?

When I hang a piece of artwork in my apartment, there are several thoughts running through my mind: First, I need to get this done so I can eat something, second, am I hanging it properly, and lastly will people who come to my apartment like it? My only concern should be whether or not I like it, full stop.

The question should be: who else needs to see it? I might feel differently if I were selling something I created.

If I am going to be honest, when I choose finishes for my apartment, I want people to think they are as beautiful as I think they are. I need validation. The same is true if I buy a watch I think is beautiful. Perhaps we all need that validation?

How Does Beauty Enhance Your Life

I can only speak for myself when I say that I cannot imagine my life without beauty; beautiful art, beautiful people, beautiful minds, and beautiful things, to name a few. I’m not sure that everyone can see and appreciate beauty; therefore, I don’t take it for granted.

The photograph above: I looked at this photograph for an entire week; this is the beauty I see: I see a moment of life, life in a different part of the world, people going places, and the beauty of a day as it unfolds.

Any thoughts on beauty?

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Future Travel

An Iceland cruise by way of Northern Europe in May; Oslo, Norway with Paco for all of July (with visits from friends throughout the month), Krakow, Poland in October, and a much anticipated trip to the Puglia region of Italy in April 2025. Booked a Greece/Turkey/Egypt cruise for fall 2025. The United States in the late fall/early winter of 2025: Brooklyn, Florida, Portland, Maine, Maryland, and North Carolina.

State-of-Mind

It was great to get away for a local weekend respite. I cut it short by a few hours because I was missing Paco quite a bit. I’m enjoying the food & wine I brought back from Spain. It’s close by in distance, but Spain’s ingredients and food sources can be vastly different. For me, variety is everything.

“No object is so beautiful that, under certain conditions, it will not look ugly.” ~ Oscar Wilde

Once again please forgive any grammatical and/or typographical errors