
What does it mean to have a beautiful life? Does it mean to be proud of yourself? To make others proud of you? Does it mean to be happy? But what is happiness? Does it mean to be in a state of bliss all the time, to always do only what you like, to be sunny all the time? To be peace, to be surrounded only by people who love and admire you? To have money flow from the sky, to live in a palace, to never be in pain?
If you think that means having a beautiful life… you are wrong. The beauty of life does not come from its linearity, but from the flow, from the meanders, from the ups and downs. Let’s say you really like chocolate cake. With lots of whipped cream and a touch of candied cherry. Sweet and tasty. Would you eat nothing but chocolate cake for the rest of your life? How long do you think you would live if you did that? What kind of life would you have if you only ate chocolate cake, because you, with your current mind, say you like it a lot and would give up soup just to eat the cake? How would you look, how would you feel, what would your mouth taste like in the morning?
You can only imagine, because you’ll never do that, you won’t just eat chocolate cake, because you realize that no quality life is possible doing that. So why do you think you would have a beautiful life if you lived in a palace or sat on the beach all the time with a cocktail in your hand? If traffic lights were green for you all the time? If nothing ever hurt you?
The beauty of life lies in its diversity. In the alternation between hot and cold, in the relief felt after the pain passes, in the wisdom that comes after a failure. In the ability to feel love and feel loved, in the feeling of “home”, in the joy of seeing something beautiful, good or useful coming out of your hands. In the ability to forgive and let go, in the power to discipline yourself without getting frustrated. In the capacity of understanding that you are frustrated, but you have the ability to manage this feeling. In the strength of being able to balance yourself, again and again, after any experience you have. In change. In non-resistance to change.
The beauty of life lies in life itself. No matter what it is, it is beautiful because it is unique. Out of the millions of possibilities you had the privilege every second to choose one. All those choices brought you to the point where you are now. Don’t resist. Why would you want to be different now? It’s impossible, it’s like banging your head against a wall, hoping a door will miraculously appear there after the thousandth hit. There are no such miracles. You can wish to be different tomorrow and you can work on this wish of yours with joy and acceptance. You can’t change yesterday, but you can influence tomorrow if you enjoy today.
First of all, it matters how you feel, only after that it matters what you can do. If you feel inferior, you will do small things, because you will think that you cannot do more. If you feel superior, you will do demonstrative things to preserve your superiority. If you feel pain, you will see only pain around you and act in desperation to get rid of the pain. If you feel cheated, you will put up walls around yourself and want revenge. If you feel frustrated, you will always gossip about those around you, envying them because they have what you don’t. If you feel unloved, you will constantly beg for love, not knowing how to give love in return.
How could you see beauty if you don’t feel beauty? If you wait for life to give you its beauty without knowing what beauty is? Without accepting beauty? Without being open to receiving beauty?
A beautiful life is not a perfect life. Perfection does not exist. There is a road that leads to better, and the beauty is in enjoying the road as it is, with mountains and valleys, with good days and not so good days. Let’s not lose sight of the destination, but let’s take a break to admire and enjoy the scenery. Life is as we feel it to be, and feeling can be educated, learned. How did you answer the question in the title? 😊