For those of you who do not know me, I like pop music as much as I like classical and jazz. Maybe it is because I am still young at heart. Maybe it is because my pre-teen children are keeping me updated with “the latest”.
Regardless, having watched and listened to Maroon Five’s “Girls Like You” for the Nth time over the past year, today I felt touched by this music video for a new reason. Yes, there are beautiful women in this video. Yet, there are also women who are not considered beautiful by mainstream standards. What touched me was how each woman nonetheless shined through with beauty in this music video, including the ones who were less showy.
I remember when I was an art student back in my twenties, we would spend hours drawing nude live models. These were men and women young and old. Yes, once in a while we did get that culturally-approved breathtaking beauty of a model who more often than screwed up my drawings. Yes, I am blaming it on her (jokingly). The majority of the live models, however, were ordinary people like you and I. Some were skinny, a few were fat, while others were somewhere in between. I am not using any of these adjectives in a derogatory manner; I am just using these words for what they are with no judgment attached. Anyway, beauty of a different kind shined through their physical form as they embraced who they are in their pose and in their naked flesh. If you ever spent time observing people with an open and accepting mind over a sustained period of time and with a high level of concentration, I believe you will have also experienced what I am describing. The person need not be naked in order for us to see their beauty. He or she only needs to be comfortable in their own skin, and have the courage to express through their bodies who they truly are at that moment. Whether the clothing is on or off does not matter.
Well, how about embracing your self in all your authenticity today? How about looking at your self and others with an open and accepting mind? See if you can sense the beauty that is hidden in plain sight. I promise you this is a worthwhile practice.
Image credits: Josh Schacter