Beauty

	They say that true beauty is within, and like most people, I once believed that this was an empty platitude. We have all been brainwashed by the media, and the snake oil salesmen of the 'beauty industry', that shallow, naturally impossible surface beauty created by surgery, lighting and air brushing of photographs is the beauty which we should strive for, but the truth is that this surface beauty is an illusion, it is not real. The truth is that our heart is the centre of our being. We exist within whatever radiates from our soul. It is what is within our heart that radiates from us, and it is what is within our heart that we project to the world as who we are, because what is within our heart is who we are.

	For much of my life, I did not understand the truth, but the truth is real. When we allow ourselves to see the true beauty of the world, and the true beauty in the people around us, we begin to feel the beauty and pure love in our heart. As we allow the pure love and beauty to radiate from within us, we begin to attract pure love and beauty to us, which in turn increases the pure love and beauty within us and around us. There is no secret, and there is no magic formula. We need only allow ourselves to see the beauty around us, and the process begins. We can start small by looking for one new thing of beauty in our world each day, and very soon we will begin to see beauty wherever we look, and we will begin to reflect the beauty that we see. We will exist at the centre of the beauty and the pure love that has grown within us, and this is what we radiate.

	We are surrounded by a dark veil, which is made up of our fears, doubts, insecurities, and negative emotions. The dark veil must be lifted. Only when the dark veil is lifted can we allow our inner light to shine out. Only when the dark veil is lifted can we see the beauty which is all around us. If we focus on our difficulties, our misfortune, and insecurities, whether these are real or imagined, they are what is at the centre of our being, and they are what radiates from within us, and what we reflect to the world. If we can change our focus from the 'ugliness' within our lives to the 'beauty' within our lives we can turn our lives around. Yes, it really it is that simple. Only by removing the dark veil permanently, can we permanently see the light and the beauty which is our world.

	Beauty Is Individual.
	Beauty is individual and often based on simplicity. A single drop of dew balanced on the end of a leaf at sunrise can radiate awesome beauty, as can elderly couple walking hand in hand, or a child reaching down to help a fallen friend. I could go on and on.

	Personally, one of the most beautiful things that I have ever seen was a single white rose, in bloom, at night under a full moon. I happened upon this rose by chance, in a simple suburban garden of an aging and tired apartment block, as I walked one night. There is no secret and no magic formula, we only need to open our eyes and allow ourselves to see the beauty which exists around us.

	There was a time when I would have walked passed that white rose without giving it a glance, and I would have missed an image of beauty which remains in my soul this day. I have no doubt that I have missed much beauty in my life, simply because I never looked.
	We must take our time living. If we are travelling too slowly, our instinct will let us know. We must slow down, and we must enjoy our journey. Our journey will take just as long if we attempt to rush our journey, and we will not have time to enjoy the beauty on the way.
	A Pretend World.

	We live in a pretend world. We pretend that things are important when they are not important, and we pretend to be someone we are not. We are so busy pretending that we forget reality. The pretend world is an ugly and depressing place. We exist within our pretend world, ignorant of the reality which we have forgotten. Reality is the beauty of nature, and the beauty of people being their true selves. When we find reality again, we wonder how we could have pretended to be satisfied with anything else. We wonder why we pretended to live, instead of really living.
	We spend most of our lifetime like a caterpillar, struggling to survive and only thinking of our immediate needs. When we live with our souls, we are like a butterfly, gliding above the ground and enjoying the true beauty of the world. The metamorphous which we undergo is extremely painful, but unless we endure the metamorphous, we will remain as caterpillars. True beauty cannot be seen when we are in the dense vegetation, struggling to survive.
	We are like caterpillars, struggling for existence against many predators and unable to see past the few leaves in front of us. We cannot imagine what it would be like to be a butterfly soaring in the wind, and seeing the beauty of everything around us. The metamorphous which we must undergo to transform from a caterpillar into a butterfly is very painful, and we have no idea what to expect when the process is complete. If we accept the analogy of the caterpillar and the butterfly, we will know that the transformation will be worth the pain.
	Enlightenment is very much an overused term. Enlightenment simply means that we have allowed the light within to shine through and we see the world in its full beauty.
	When we become enlightened, we see everything. Colours are brighter, and the various shades of any given colour are more discernible. The world becomes crystal clear and beautiful. We cannot imagine that anything could be so beautiful, as the simple reality of the world is, when we allow ourselves to see the simple reality of the world.
	This is enlightenment. This is how the world really is, but we do not allow ourselves to see the simple reality of the world. We are too busy looking for artificial beauty. We have to learn to see the world as the world really is. When we see the true beauty of the world for the first time, we gaze at the world in awe.
	The beauty of the world increases each time that we increase our perception of colours which we had previously been unable to perceive.
	When our fear based environment becomes a love based environment the beauty of the earth plane will become more beautiful, the joy of the earth plane will become more joyful and the love of the earth plane will encompass everything. This is how the earth plane was once experienced and this is how the earth plane will be experienced again.

	Balance.
	We need have no concern for the future of the earth plane. Everything has progressed as it was foreseen and much negativity has been experienced. Much of the remaining time of the earth plane will be the experience of the positive nature of the earth plane and the true beauty of that which God has created.
	We can look upon the spirit plane and we can see the true spiritual nature of our existence, we can review any experience from our existence, and we can see the beauty of the higher plane. However, it is only on the earth plane that we can feel beauty, and therefore experience beauty.
	We must maintain a balance between practicality and appearance. If we focus on practicality, we cannot enjoy the beauty of appearance. If we place too much value on appearance, we will lose the benefits of practicality. Everything in our life must be a balance between practicality and appearance.
	We need to apply understanding, to the seed of our knowledge. Not all seeds grow, it is the way of things. We cannot expect seeds to grow, unless the seeds are nurtured. The seeds of our knowledge will only be nurtured, if we choose to see what the seeds of our knowledge will grow in to. Be it the beauty of a flower to feed the soul, or the goodness of fruit to feed the body.
	All of the beauty in the world may lift our spirits and may allow us to feel at peace inside, but the beauty of the world will not pay the bills.


Copyright permission is seldom withheld.

Beauty Is Individual.

A Pretend World.

Balance.