Inner Beauty

"For beautiful eyes, look for the good in others; for beautiful lips, speak only words of kindness; and for poise, walk with the knowledge that you are never alone."— Audrey HepburnAs a  young girl I looked to my mother as the icon of beauty. I always  noticed that she was  appealing and charismatic.   Men would stop her on the street, women would start chatting with her at the  grocery store and all my friends wanted her to hang out with us.  She was really quite something.  My father,  being a bit crass gave her the nickname Audrey Heartburn. Nice. One thing that I did recognize about my mother was that she would tend to look on the bright side of things, and give others the benefit of the doubt. If I came home from a confrontation with a girl at school, she would remind me that perhaps the reason the other little girl was so cruel, was because she may not have it so good at home. It could be quite frustrating when I wanted to complain, or have her on my side. Looking back, I am happy that I had a mother that pointed out that I might look a little further into someone to find some compassion. Decades later, my mother became a  literacy teacher to children, and was quite the popular rock star. Kids would beg their parents to allow them to be tutored, even if they were doing well in school. Mom was in demand.  She played with and entertained the kids, one of them was   quite disappointed when he found out she was not his age and he would not be able to marry her.   It was a lesson she taught to a little girl ,Luah, who was not in the spotlight next to her friend who was being complimented on her beautiful dress. Luah was a little upset and asked "what about mine?" My mother noticed this and  told her that there is such a thing as "inner beauty." Did she know what that was? And proceeded to share with her about goodness. What a lovely lesson, even to this day. Inner Beauty. What is it? It is a feeling towards the world. A way of looking at the world with love. It's a way of feeling touched by the gifts of nature  that we can find in any given moment. Standing in the light of life itself , we can develop the grace to receive abundance and to take each moment thoughtfully and with poise. This requires presence of heart and mind. Taking the time to be exactly where you are and to choose light and delight. You are not alone. The best possible way to know this in your heart is to  begin a relationship with a force that walks alongside you, supports and sustains you. The best possible way to begin is with a sit. I've heard it said that prayer is how I talk to God, and meditation is   how I listen.  In each moment, as I pause through out my day , I can allow this stream of light to enter my heart. Prior to my action, I can learn to pause and see through the eyes of G-d. Which holds all in the light. To me, this is Inner Beauty.