When I walk into my daughter's home, Felix, her two year old, comes running toward me. He is excited to see his Nono/Noni and proclaims that Noni is home. He doesn't stop to consider if my shirt is clean, my hair is combed, or that I have egg on my face. His joy is in how he and I spend time together. As an adult I want to be more childlike and not focus on the imperfections but the joy even in my own reflection.
Some would say our brokenness makes us unacceptable but the truth is the beauty is in our journey even the paths we shouldn't have taken. My seventeen year old grandgirl hurt my feelings unintentionally. She marked on my arm with a permanent marker. When I complained, she pointed out that I already have lots of spots so it was no big deal. She could tell that hurt my feelings because I am sensitive to the many age spots I am wearing these days. Lissa didn't comment on my imperfections out of meanness. She was just stating the fact that I have these spots. I could choose to mask them with makeup or long sleeves but they are there from decades of sitting at ball games watching my kids play sports. Why should I be ashamed of that?
It is our thinking that needs to be shifted. Rather than seeing the flaws as a bad thing we can shift to embrace the aging process. I grew up a Phoenix girl so of course I was in the sun all the time. My face and arms reflect that. How your life has been lived will be a part of your walk as well as your reflection. Perhaps you lived through a fire and wear the scars to prove it. Maybe you have survived cancer and are sporting a hat rather than hair. Whatever we see when we look in the mirror we should not view as something to be ashamed of but as something that proves we live.
Others love us for our smiles that reach all the way to our eyes when we see them. We need to follow the lead of a two year old and accept ourselves for the beautiful imperfection that we are..........spots and all.
In Him,
Joyful
4-17-22
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