“Pretty attracts us. Beauty changes us. Be a force of beauty” –Bare Escentuals
I was walking through Macy’s and saw a box with this written on it and the words arrested my attention. I paused, pondered, and snapped a photo so as not to forget the message. I started to think…what would a force of beauty look like in today’s world?
Being a force of beauty is authentic. It’s powerful. It’s deep.
It’s also risky.
Do you think the rose blooms without some danger? Not at all. When the rose opens up, it exposes itself to the elements, and its fragile beauty can be damaged by the natural elements or a careless step. Our beauty is much the same; when we open up to reveal the innermost beautiful essence we hold, we can also be hurt, damaged or even crushed. Indeed, in a world where beauty is more recently gauged by superficiality, it takes great courage to bloom.
Danger aside, it is imperative that we bloom. We live in an age where beauty is not held as a sacred virtue. Often, people are far too consumed with their electronic devices to see, hear, or smell what surrounds them. Our world has traded wrinkles for Botox and has thus eliminated the character etched in our faces. Iconic women of our day are stick thin, many have had plastic surgery and wear so much makeup they are nearly unrecognizable without it. Many people are living an illusion with psuedo-connections that are fostered and encouraged by our society. What we need is beauty.
Beauty beckons, without striving, competing or comparing. Beauty simply is. A sunset does not have to shout to be noticed; it just is what it is, and that alone is enough to capture the attention of millions. Beauty requires something of us; it requires that we pause and reflect, drinking it in and allowing it to penetrate us. Beauty saves. How many soldiers have survived horrific war times simply because they had beauty to return home to?
Beauty inspires—that is why we send flowers to people who are ill. Something about the beauty of flowers breathes life into the bleakest of circumstances.
Beauty awakes and illuminates. It opens up our heart to our experience, waking us up from mundane existence. Beauty, however, cannot be confined to women, men, young or old. Beauty can be found in mansions, ghettos, sidewalks, nursing homes, and in the midst of crisis. Beauty is authentic, vulnerable, open, alive, vibrant, courageous, and free.
To be a force of beauty is to step out of the shadows and into the fullness of who you are with all you have to offer without hiding or masking. Being a force of beauty means you shed the expectations others hold of you and become who you are meant to be. Being a force of beauty means enjoying your life and holding each moment sacred.
Be a world-changer.
Be a force of beauty.
— Lisa Vallejos
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