MZD - Ep 90 Cultivating Beauty

"…If you're down to your final dime, can't decide what else to buy to be happy You don't need a credit card to give your heart the beauty of the world..." ~ Peter Mayer Well the hustle and bustle of Christmas has come and gone, and it's the end of another year.  Snowflakes are gently falling outside.   The presents have been opened.  The children are happily playing in the other room, and you sit with the one you love, sipping hot chocolate reading from a book with Currier and Ives prints, in front of the crackling fire, and breathe a deep sigh of contentment.  Sounds like a Netflix Christmas special doesn't it? So your world doesn't look like this?  What is it about this scene that appeals to us?  Aside from the peace and quiet that is finally here, what about this setting draws and attracts us like moths to a flame? Is it the beauty?  Beauty is an interesting thing. The preferences and specifics can vary and change to a certain degree, but I think it's safe to say that we all long for and appreciate "Beauty". Sunsets and rainbows, scenic landscapes, ocean views, rich forests and placid lakes all speak to us in a language of the soul. Music and nature sounds, like gently falling rain, babbling brooks, whippoorwills, chickadees, crickets and spring peepers all soothe and calm us with their beautiful melodies. Story and song, paintings, quilt-work, sculptures and woodwork, jewelry and even finely designed clothing are all a reflection of the natural world around us and, help bring purpose and meaning into our every day lives beyond just making a living so that we can put food on the table and a roof over our heads. As best selling author Joyce Carol Oates says, "Art is the highest expression of the human spirit", and if that's true, as artists, and appreciators of art, if you will, when we create and enjoy beauty, we are leaning into our highest selves and therefore transforming into better human beings.  There's so much we could discuss about the power of beauty to help us transcend to new and glorious heights, but for the sake of time today, let me just encourage us each to take time to seek, express, appreciate and cultivate more beauty into our lives. The journey begins by recognizing the beauty of the world, and in truth, the entire Universe before us.