Thursday, October 18, 2012

Days of Beauty: To experience, not just see.


Lovely photos, inspiring posts and magazines, God's amazing creation! All of these allow me to see beauty and pretty frequently really.

But, I'm not one who is just content to just stand on the outside and look or observe beauty. I want to be part of it, to make it part of me, to jump in and experience it making it come alive. When beauty inspires me - it stirs me up to action and beckons me to embrace it and make it mine as well.

Certainly there are things I am more than happy to be on the sidelines for - sports anyone? They have never been my thing. But, beauty is different - beauty draws me in and I can't help but be a willing participant!


Here's an example: I love the photos over at Posie Gets Cozy! Recently, she posted these yummy looking brownies and we had friends coming for dinner (see our Family Night post tomorrow!) - so I decided to try them out! I don't try every new recipe I see of course, but there is something fun and exciting about trying a new one out!

And, when it is so beautifully presented, it is especially inspiring. Rachel must like to experience beauty too - she cut these lovely flowers and was eager for me to find a vase!



I find, too, that I am very careful about decisions I make when it comes to purchasing something new for my home - does it fit? Does it add beauty? Does it serve and help? Will I enjoy using it?

I've always had vintage enamelware tea kettles, but eventually they do rust and my current one had hit the point where I did not feel it was safe to use. This time, I decided to get a new one that still held charm, beauty and inspiring design but was also practical. So far, I already love this new one for not having a hot handle, a lid that stays on! and a lovely non-stick coating inside.

Small examples, but ones that show how I choose to experience beauty and make it real to me. I love to make beauty come alive in our home and I love to help expose others to beauty when they are in our home.

How do you experience and not just view beauty?



3 comments:

Julian said...

I like your teapot! I too love fresh flowers,inside and out. I like using my grandmothers linens,and doilies. To me,it is beautiful to use something that was used in the past,not to have it sit in a trunk full of mothballs. I agree with being careful about your purchases. It took me a few years to learn that one:). I often get inspired by blogs and magazines. But its when im actually creating beauty,that it comes alive for me.
Have a great day! Christina

angie said...

It is not enough for me to experience natural beauty without bringing it inside. I usually come home from a walk with full pockets of found objects--acorns, colorful leaves, pine cones, neat rocks. Sometimes I display it as is, sometimes I combine it with an object already in my home. For example, I recently surrounded a candle with acorns in a metal tray.
I am going to blame you for my chocolate craving today!

Mom said...

I like your new teakettle and the rest of these photos :) -- and I love the concept of experiencing beauty in addition to seeing it. Love you! Mom