Why Impossible Beauty?

It was striking. To the point I had to pause and appreciate it. It’s as if the universe stood still and waited for me to take notice. Otherworldly beauty poured into our oh-so-ordinary living room. Streams of glorious light flooded the room as the strength of the rising sun found its way between the pine trees in our yard and into our bay window. So simple and yet so astounding. The beauty seemed too good to be true.

Sometimes it can be hard to remember that that kind of beauty exists. Particularly when life is hard and brokenness rears its head. When the heartbreak and struggles of life get in the way of embracing and trusting that that kind of splendor is real.

Here’s the thing though. I have glimpsed eternal beauty and I know it is real. I see it in my nieces and nephew. I see it in friends and family who say and do things that are totally selfless and loving. I see it in the ocean that just seems to go on forever. I know it’s real because I experience it in goodness, in love, in joy, and all of life’s other good gifts. There is so much beauty every day.

The hard part is when the currents of beauty collide with currents of shame, grief, and struggle. What I’ve noticed though is that brokenness does not consume beauty. Darkness cannot prevail in the presence of light. In fact, I believe that beauty is so strong and persevering, that one day, it will totally win out. The beauty we now see in glimpses will invade and define our entire reality.

Since we’re not there yet, my hope is that this might be a place of grounding and a place of hope. To remind you, to remind us, that beauty is alive and well and it is all around us. To remind one another of what beauty truly is. And that it is anything but impossible.