Beauty

Beauty

“We live only to discover beauty. All else is a form of waiting.” ~ Kahlil Gibran

I believe that beauty is one of the most important things in our lives. We may not realise it, but through the ages, beauty has driven men to madness and to greatness; it has been the ink that had written many a life. Wars have been fought, books have been written and songs have been sung – all attributed to beauty. Even today, beauty is the root of many of the things that we yearn for. Why is it that beauty speaks so deeply to the hearts of men (and women)?

Looking at my own life, I aspire to drive a sports car, retire in an old castle somewhere in Europe and find a wife whom cannot be compared to the most valuable of treasures. For now, I'd just like a nice green garden, and perhaps, a koi pond. All of these are objects of beauty. I'm sure that you also have things that you would love to have, and I challenge you to prove that it is not beauty that you desire. Be it a house, a car or a wife – all of these are mere facades behind which our true desire can be found – the desire for beauty. If you want more evidence of how a deep desire for beauty has been encapsulated in the human heart throughout history, simply look at our fairy-tales; Cinderella was beautiful, the Sleeping Beauty was beautiful and even the Beast in Beauty and the Beast was a beautiful creature, bound by a curse (depriving him of his beauty).

Paris ran off with Helen, Menelaus launched a thousand ships to reclaim her and Achilles became a hero unlike any other – all because of beauty. Though it might’ve been a taste for adventure that drove Christopher Columbus to the Americas, I believe that a taste for adventure is but a desire to look upon a beauty that has not been seen by the eyes of others. You see, when we discover beauty, it gives us a purpose; a sense of satisfaction that one gains only from finding something that makes life worth living.

Beauty comes in many forms, and as the old adage goes, beauty lies in the eye of the beholder – it is something that speaks to the heart of a man. To one man, beauty lies in music, to another it lies in nature, to another it lies in women. Just as hunger (the desire for food) can be satisfied by anything from a chocolate bar to a perfectly grilled steak, beauty is an abstract entity which can come to life a multitude of forms; each of which speaks to us in a different way. Beauty brings a sense of tranquillity – there are few places where a man can contemplate life better than a retreat in the mountains, standing the banks of a clear stream with a fly rod in hand – surrounded by nothing but beauty.

As all good things in life, beauty requires cultivation. If one does not cater to a garden, it will wither and die. If a human being does not look after his or her body, beauty fades away. If a painter does not spend hours upon hours perfecting his or her craft, objects of beauty will not be produced. (This is a good place to discuss the importance of global warming, preserving the planet, and the Angelina Jolie Conservation Fund.)

Ashley Smith said the following; “Life is full of beauty. Notice it. Notice the bumble bee, the small child, and the smiling faces. Smell the rain, and feel the wind.” In the 21st century, our lives are so rushed that we often overlook the abundance of beautiful things in our world. In my honest opinion, people were a lot happier a hundred years ago. Maybe this is due to the fact that they took the time to admire beauty – even if it was a simple as enjoying a beautiful sunrise (because they had to get up to while it was still dark to prepare breakfast). We still have bumble bees, we still have small children, and if you spend a bit of time searching for it, I bet that you’ll find a smiling face as well. Slow down, take the time to enjoy the beautiful things that we have been blessed with, and learn how to appreciate them anew.

I leave you with a word of warning – do not overindulge in beauty. Appreciate it, but do not smother it, lest it loses its value. Salvador Dali, the painter, had an excellent way of doing this. Standing upon a cliff-top, in his garden, he would pluck a ripe peach from a tree. He would then take a bite, savour the beauty of the moment, spit out the bite that he had taken and cast the peach into the sea below. A large part of appreciating beauty lies in realizing its fleetingness – every woman is beautiful unlike any other, each sunset is unique, each star sparkles in its own unique way - appreciate it now, for you may never have the opportunity again.