The Happiness of Perceiving Beauty
One of the rewards of practicing a positive attitude—happiness, gratitude, openness to beauty—is that, after awhile, you have whole days where the attitude floods your mind.
I got hooked by gratitude last week, and was nearly moved to tears by the waves of overwhelming thankfulness and appreciation that washed through me.
Today, while I was on a photowalk, capturing the latest scene for my year-long photo project, I fell into what I call a trance of beauty. The silhouette of trees against the sky, a pin oak leaf fallen on a heap of pine needles, a withered mullein plant, its leaves brown and folded . . . everything seemed painted with grace.
I expected to find beauty, of course. I’m 146 days into my photo project now, and I have learned that beauty is always there, every single time I look for it. Happiness is always there, too, when I pause to ask myself my core question, “Why am I so happy now?” Expectation is a kind of faith that always finds its reward.
Tonight I’m awash in beauty, and it touches my soul and assures me that all is well. The gentle light falling from my lamp has such a mellow hue. The shadow cast by the glass that sits at its base falls in such graceful curves. The fur of the cat sleeping on the corner of my desk is incredible in its texture and color. The weave of the shirt I’m wearing is so orderly and precise. What wonders! How amazing! How blessed I feel just to be experiencing them.
Everything that meets my eyes is cast in beauty, however ordinary it might seem to my general day-to-day sight. I take this trance as a gift, a reassurance that practice produces rewards. And I will honor the experience by continuing to look, and to expect, and to believe.
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