Once upon a time (about a year ago) I discovered that one of my core values is
beauty. And by beauty I am not talking
about manufactured attractiveness - the "if I visit my hair stylist and wear makeup for the pictures then maybe I won't be embarrassed to show my driver's license to everyone" perception of beauty, or the "I don't care who I date as long as he has a six-pack (and I'm not talking about beer), yum, yum, yum" deluded manner of thinking.
No. The beauty I am talking about is the beauty of creation as demonstrated by the
sun dipping behind the mountains setting the world on fire with an almost other-worldly glow.
It's the beauty of a person who finally finds his or her
self-confidence and learns how to smile from the heart. It's the beauty of a
community that unites together and supports one another through tough
times. It is found in the simple and spontaneous moments of life. It's when you see or hear something that just takes your breath away and you think to yourself "Ah, that's beautiful."
Beauty is all about perspective;
about seeing the world as God made it and realizing that it is good. It seeks to find the value in everyone and
everything.
Another core value for me is "sanctuary". And no, before the question comes up, I am not talking about a television show, a wildlife reserve for birds, hippos or iguanas, or the sacred interior of a church building (although the word could apply to all three, and I have watched the television show). The "sanctuary" I am discussing is found in the silence, the stillness,
the solitude; there is beauty there too.
But sanctuary for me is not simply an absence of people and of
noise. It is a state of being: of being
completely myself, of being completely whole.
It is when I come face to face with myself and with God and see myself
in perspective to Him and realize that I am loved and complete in who I am –
even if the person who I am is not perfect and does not always act in a way
that is beautiful.
Sanctuary is an inner
space where I feel a sense of worship towards the divine. It is where I surrender and release the need
to be in control and turn my eyes to the El Shaddai and in the process of
losing myself in Him, I rediscover who I am.
It might be the influence of the these two values that have helped pique my interest in photography. That or it was all the hiking with my crazy friend where we kept finding amusing photographic opportunities like this:
Either way, the fact is that I have become addicted to the feeling of finding moments of beauty, sanctuary, and yes even humour and capturing them in that instant so I can share the same wonder that I feel with the rest of the world. When you learn how to look at the world in a certain way it becomes all the more amazing.
