Inner Beauty

I'm sure this has happened to you.  You meet someone new and you can't help but notice how physically attractive the person is. Then, it happens--you get to know them and the attractive person you first saw disappears because of the person's bad attitude.  I remember, as a child, meeting a boy who was not attractive; in fact, many in today's society would say he was ugly. I got to know this boy and he had such a great attitude that it radiated from him. When I saw him I saw an attractive person. It really is what's on the inside that matters.

I have been blessed with three amazing kids.  I have been especially blessed with a 6-year-old who has the biggest heart and the wisest little brain I think I've ever come across. He is always saying things that you don't expect kids to say.  He thinks about things and he observes things.  Songs make him cry and he hates seeing others sad or suffering. Once, while eating lunch in McDonald's, a little girl was crying because she dropped her fries on the floor. I watched my then 5-year-old watch this little girl cry.  I saw him look down at his fries, back up at her, and then at me.  He said, (in that little high pitched, Logan voice), "Can I give her my fries?  It would make her happy." I watched him gather up his fries and carry them to the little girl.  I watched the mother's shocked expression as she watched Logan gladly hand over his own fries to make her daughter happy.

Today was no different.  We were waiting for Alex to finish his therapies when a woman came in wearing leggings, boots, a really nice top and a scarf with pretty jewelry.  Her hair was perfect (even though it's extremely windy out) and her make up was perfect.  She was pretty. The woman walked in with four children and was immediately rude and impatient with the people in the office.  She was irritated at her children and snapped at them constantly.  She would sigh and roll her eyes.  She looked so pretty when she first walked in and then, in a matter of minutes, that beauty factor nearly disappeared because of her attitude.  Logan watched her for a while and then, in his little Logan voice, said, "She looks pretty, but her inside need some work." Wow.  How true is that?  I sat there listening to the woman sigh and snap at her children and I thought about how we always focus on our outward appearance and sometimes our inner appearance is what needs the most work. People always say, "It's what's inside that counts."  How true that statement is.

Today's incident reminded me of a bible verse that I learned as a child. "Your beauty should not come from outward adornment, such as braided hair and the wearing of gold jewelry and fine clothes. Instead, it should be that of your inner self, the unfading beauty of a gentle and quiet spirit."  1 Peter 3:3-4a

I am thankful for this reminder that it is what's on the inside that really matters.
And thankful that, while we live in a society that praises outer beauty, my children still know that there are more important things than how you look in this life.