Beauty is also such. I have stood in the presence of such beautiful people. I have been in awe by the beauty that can radiate out of a human being. It is hard to describe, but I know I have seen it with my bare eye. 

Unfortunately, our culture has reduced beauty to visual perfection. Magazine covers feature women who are not only young, healthy, and lovely- they also remove any flaw or imperfection from their body or skin. We are truly looking at aliens, meaning they are not actually human but rather something other worldy and unreal. 

The same goes for the world of plastic surgery. Now, we are extremely fortunate to have such a medical wonder to have something as advanced as plastic surgery. What an amazing thing for someone who has been in a car accident and had their face destroyed or someone who has experienced a severe burn. Yet we have taken it to a new level and now alter the way we look completely so as to attempt to become less insecure or more wanted by our partners. 

Lastly, I sadly see beauty tragically defamed in the world of our “sex culture”. Women who are idolized as beautiful are chock full of enhancements. Fake tans, plastic surgery, and sexy figures are what is featured in sex magazines and the growing pornography world. 

I am not undermining physical beauty. Physical beauty is a god-given, wonderful and amazing thing. Women are just drop dead gorgeous. I often admire many gals as I am out and about and am truly amazed by how unique and lovely some people are! Some people do have awesome bodies they work hard for (or are just blessed to have those natural curves). Sometimes I love getting tanned, my nails done, hair blown out, or a new outfit. I am not knocking on the fact we can spruce ourselves up. I am simply saying that our culture idolizes this and makes it the standard to live up to, we go crazy trying to be skinny and pretty, and lose sight of what real beauty is in the process… 

I often gaze at my daughter and am amazed at how perfect each and every feature is on her body. Her tiny toes, long eyelashes, and her sparkly eyes captivate me. Yet what I find most beautiful of all about her is her beaming smile that is so full of heart and life. But without that heart and life motivating that smile, it would be empty. She is beautiful because she is. That is it. She needs nothing more and nothing less in my opinion. There is nothing that could make her less beautiful to me-  no physical imperfection could lessen her beauty. 

Mother Teresa won the 1979 Nobel Peace Prize. She founded the Missionaries of Charity. The charity focuses on giving “wholehearted and free service to the poorest of the poor” and helps people with HIV/AIDS, tuberculosis, leprosy, soup kitchens, orphanages and schools. One women who reported her encounter with Mother Teresa on the website motherteresa.org, explained- “I have often been asked what it was like to look into Mothers face, and all I can say is that it was like looking into the face of God.” Is there a higher compliment? 

Anne Frank is one of our most beloved writers and one of the most discussed victims of the Holocaust. Just four months before their hiding place was stormed by the Police, she wrote the following entry in her diary:

“I finally realized that I must do my schoolwork to keep from being ignorant, to get on in life, to become a journalist, because that’s what I want! I know I can write …, but it remains to be seen whether I really have talent …