Beauty is…

I would love to talk about body image today.  I know this can be a very delicate subject for many of us, but i think it’s important to discuss as part of looking at beauty.  Men are handsome and women are beautiful, but the beauty itself is in the eye of the beholder.

When we look at other people, we instantly subconsciously assess what we think of them.  And not just how they walk, but everything about them.  It takes only a few seconds for us to decide whether we like them or not and whether we think they are beautiful or not.  And their clothing can be a big part of what we believe about them.

There is a famous story in America of a couple that went to a university to give them money or help them in some way (can’t remember which).  Anyway, the person they spoke to denied them access to whoever it was they were hoping to see because they weren’t dressed in a way that indicated they had a lot of money.  So they decided to go out and build a university themselves.

Now we can see that judging people via the clothes they wear just isn’t wise.  They don’t have to dress in a particular style for you to be able to judge them accurately.  Obviously there are some situations where someone’s clothing is important.  I read an article yesterday that talked about the rules the Princess of Wales needs to follow as part of the royal family.  And I believe that is correct.  She follows the rules because she knows it is the right thing to do to show her respect for the throne of  the United Kingdom and at some point she will be the Queen of England next to the ruling monarch, her husband William, Prince of Wales.

There’s a saying “Beauty is in the eye of the beholder” and I believe it’s true.  I always thought Kevin was handsome when I first met him.  It is obvious he has some kind of medical genetic condition but that doesn’t matter.  We are both disabled and it doesn’t bother our relationship in the slightest.  Kevin and I met online and then in person.  The day we got my engagement ring, that night I had an emergency surgery for a cyst on my ovaries that was causing me problems.  I will never forget him coming to me the evening after the surgery at visiting time and I was being really sick (pretty normal for me after operations) and he stood there, holding the sick bowl for me, and stroking my hair, telling me how beautiful I was.

When we were going to be married, I thought that I should get a dress that would “do” but my bridesmaid took me to a wedding shop in Glasgow and they put me in more and more dresses and FINALLY they got me in a dress that felt absolutely incredible.  It was a size 28 and at the time I was only a size 8, so even with it pinned around me I felt wonderful so I knew it was the right one for me.  I guess you would say I had a “moment” there and knew that I had to get the dress.

So whether you are beautiful in certain clothes or not, it doesn’t really matter.  The clothes don’t make a person beautiful.  I always said my friend Sheila could be dressed in a bin bag and still look gorgeous.