I looked in the mirror…
the other day and the disappointment was instantaneous. So, I pulled out my sword, swung it in the air, killing that thought in a flourish of steel and rage.
How dare I try to make her feel unworthy and small!
I proceeded to look deeply into her eyes. The corners of her mouth sprung up into a radiant smile and I said out loud, “You are beautiful,” and her eyes began to sparkle.
Stay vigilant.
The mind is a maze of historical junk. Why junk? Because most of it was laid on top of the truth. Seeing with our eyes allowed us to believe that we were living yet our hands were twitching with understanding.
The only way to the truth was to dig.
Can Belief Be a Delusion?
I have learned a lot about myself in the last few years.
The lessons that stuck were the ones that I knew to be true.
The ones that I left behind were those that I empirically couldn’t get myself to believe.
The following lyrics are from a Gavin DeGraw song titled Belief:
“Belief makes things real, makes things feel, alright.”
But does it?
Can belief be a delusion? Like people who believe that they can sing, but evidently cannot.
Are Words Enough?
Moments are fleeting.
It is here. You live it. Another replaces it. However, its transitory nature cannot belie its significance.
Within each one is a lifetime and we must learn what we are to learn all over again.
Is telling myself that I am beautiful, when I am not, wise? And is it enough that I believe it or do the ones that love me have to believe it too to make it real?
The movie The Enchanted Cottage, from 1945, illustrates that question. It’s about a homely maid and an injured war veteran who discover each other in an enchanted honeymoon cottage.
As they fall in love, they become what the other sees in them: An unmatched beauty.
The viewer knows that, because of their love for one another, they see past their outer imperfections to discover that true beauty lies within.
The characters, however, believe that their love has transformed them physically.
Words are not necessary when love is made manifest. Especially when referring to yourself.
Love Is a Language
Love for anyone, including yourself, has nothing to do with belief. It’s more of a language. It’s one heart speaking to another. Or in the case of an individual, a heart that recognizes the absolute beauty that already is.
Everything on the outside reflects that love.
If that changes what we see, then love has taken root.
Does that mean that I don’t truly love myself if I occasionally see my imperfections? Maybe. Because in those moments I am not looking at myself through my own eyes.
I know that I am not physically beautiful…to others. However, the more that I fall in love with myself my physical beauty increases because of the way I feel about me.
Belief doesn’t necessarily make things true. It makes them real because you begin to live what you believe.
Accepting yourself as you are, is beautiful. Hating yourself because you believe that you don’t measure up to what others believe is sad. You are worthy and good enough and beautiful in your own unique way because of how you live, who you are, and what you believe about yourself.
“Do not be a harsh judge of yourself. Without kindness toward ourselves we cannot love the world.”
Buddha
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