Seeing Beauty

I am a pretty typical introvert. An INFP on the Myers Briggs to be exact. I can remember a time before I had kids when I would run to the grocery store and not speak to anyone. My goal was to get my stuff and go through the self check-out line and get the heck outta there. Speaking to strangers is not really my deal, I enjoy the anonymity of big cities and large crowds. If I know you and I love you then I will talk to you all day, if I'm leading a class or speaking to a crowd, then I have no problem connecting and being present. But, I am not typically super friendly to you if you are a random person at Walmart.

Which makes the fact that my daughter is the most extroverted, friendly person that I have ever known kind of hilarious and awkward for her introverted, introspective mamma. Lily likes everybody, everyone she meets is her new best friend...and so, our trips to the grocery store become long drawn out meet and greets with literally EVERY SINGLE PERSON that we happen upon. And as much as Lily loves people, people love Lily just as much, if not more so. Most of the time, when she is talking away at people, I just smile and stop briefly and say about as little as possible to them before moving on. I answer their questions about the kids, "No, they aren't twins." "No, we didn't mean to have them 13 months a part." "Yes, she is very friendly, isn't she?" and then we push on to the next aisle where we go through the same song and dance over and over again.

To be honest, I get a little stressed out having to speak to every dang person at United in Borger whilst in my 4 year old pre-baby yoga pants that probably have boogers on them.

This morning while we were at the little Farmers Market here in town Lily struck up a conversation with a very sweet lady. They talked and laughed and I nodded and smiled and tried to make sure Levi didn't run into the street. I wasn't really listening or super involved in what they were saying as I was thinking about all the things we needed to do that morning.

As we were loading back into the car Lily said to me "Wasn't that lady so beautiful, mom?" And this question gave me pause, because the person that we were speaking to was certainly very kind and pleasant and had a very inviting smile but was not someone who I would have identified as being beautiful in the traditional sense. I asked Lily then what made the lady beautiful and she responded to me "She had a very happy heart."

I looked at my child who is so young and yet so very wise and realized how much she truly sees people without judgement and with grace. She saw a person that I would have overlooked 9 times out of 10 and saw her for what she was, a woman of great beauty because of her happy heart.

Sometimes I see the world through very jaded, impatient eyes. I look at people and see income or education, I look at people and quickly categorize them. I deem others worthy or unworthy by how they look, when I see them at all, because most of the time I am to busy and in my head to even notice. And I miss out on truly seeing people and their hearts because of my own preconceived notions.

I am thankful for the opportunity I now have to view the world through the kindness and love of my kids and I hope that especially on a day like 9/11 we cease to see what separates us as people and we can see people across nations and cultures and religions and political affiliations as they are. People created in the image of God.

My prayer today is that we can all begin to look at people the way Lily looks at people. That I can be present to the beauty that is in each and every person. Jesus was so right on when he spoke of the little children inheriting the kingdom and how we each needed to be more like them.

May you see like a child today, friends. May you see someone's heart instead of just seeing their clothes and their position in society. And may you remember that all it takes to be beautiful is a happy heart.