My friend Charles wrote me a letter
about beauty. He has determined beauty is a learned experience and yet, what he
elaborates having learned from his mother is an ability to see beauty, to “take
time to rekindle the flames of appreciation.” Does everyone see an unencumbered
sun taking over the sky in the morning as heart stoppingly beautiful? Maybe
not. We are each particular in our appreciations, guided by our circumstances.
I don’t think I learned the sun’s beauty from anyone, but absence has increased
my fondness. Seattle winters with the constant interruption of hills and cloud
cover have colored my view of this big Montana sky ablaze. It is recognition of
the appreciation I have learned. Charles has reminded me of a question my
friend Tania was asked in a job interview, “Beauty, yes or no?” Without
hesitation I can say “yes.”
