My husband is a linguist, so I have it on good authority that various cultures give different meanings to similar words and phrases. Society, culture, family of origin, environment – these all affect how we define a word. Here is an example.
If I call you on the phone and say, “Let’s go out for coffee,” would you think we were meeting up at a place like Starbucks? Or is the main meaning that we will meet up for a ‘quick snack’, with a timeframe that is usually understood to be shorter rather than longer than if I said, “Let’s meet up for dinner”?
Speaking of dinner, if you are asked to “come for dinner,” be sure you ask what time of day. I grew up with ‘dinner’ being the noon meal and ‘supper’ the evening meal.
Let’s get back to the idea of beauty. Think of the things that are generalized as being beautiful without exception – newborns, brides, puppies, kittens, bloomed roses, a sky with no clouds, a calm sea, or even the one you love the most.
Myth buster moment: not all these things are beautiful to everyone who sees them. Remember the exercise that is on my home page? (If you did not do it, perhaps go back before reading onwards). The word ‘beauty’ in and of itself creates a meaning because we give it that meaning based on a lot of beliefs.
In relation to the beauty of a woman, Audrey Heburn has been quoted to say,
“The beauty of a woman is not in the clothes she wears, the figure that she carries, or the way that she combs her hair. The beauty of a woman is seen in her eyes because that is the doorway to her heart, the place where love resides. True beauty in a woman is reflected in her soul. It’s the caring that she lovingly gives and the passion she shows. And the beauty of a woman only grows with passing years.”
https://www.goalcast.com/2017/06/13/top-28-audrey-hepburn-quotes-to-open-your-heart/
As the author of this blog, this is what I am learning. That inside each of us is a beauty that gets hidden. I will write more about this in the coming days, but for now let’s pause here with a simple exercise.
My challenge for you this week is to find three people and say to them, “You are beautiful!” (Perhaps the first person should be the one you see in the mirror.)
Until next time, this is me…helping you…Spark Yr Beauty!
Lots of great ideas that encourage me to look at my own individual perceptions of the meaning of words I use and where my perception of these meanings came from and how those thoughts/ perceptions have evolved over the years.
Well-written , warm and thought provoking!!!