B-E-A-U-TIFUL

It's the most complex idea I have ever contemplated. It's different for everyone. It can be concrete. It can be abstract. It's subjective. It's the source of all evil! 

.beauty.

 I think that the idea of beauty is very complicated. I've wrote a few papers on this topic, yet I am still confused as to what beauty is. "Beauty is in the eye of the beholder" yada yada blah blah blah...it's not that simple, I don't think. What I consider beautiful is somewhat different or maybe completely different than the person sitting next to me. The first thing I think of, and probably most other people as well, when we think of beauty is looks. Is that there all there is to beauty? Well of course not. There are several different aspects of beauty. Megan Fox is an well known "beauty" of our time. But why? Well that's obvious! She's young, fit, and sexy! She has well proportioned features, long hair, and for some reason these are the characteristics that define beautiful. So does that make me beautiful then? I'm  young and fit! Ha, this is where it gets complicated, beauty is too subjective for that. It's not just "that's beautiful and that's not." Oh heck no! I guess beauty really is in the eye of the beholder. Simply because we are all different and may find different people, ideas, or things beautiful. In Africa, the woman to the left is probably viewed as gorgeous! I find it interesting that something as simple as culture and upbringing shape how we see the rest of our lives. For example, I don't necessarily find the African tribal piercings and lip plates very pretty, but I grew up thinking that skinny, flawless women were the beautiful ones. Jessica Simpson has a new show, I can't remember the name of it, but she travels around the world to find out how different cultures view beauty. I think it is really an interesting idea. I love how she doesn't assume that what's beautiful is the "Megan Fox" type. 

Knowing that beauty isn't just looks, and that personality is just as much part of beauty as looks are, why do I still try to conform? I've tried to convince myself that I'm not conforming. I work out most every day, and really I think I do it more for the look. Feeling healthy is just a benefit. I get  up early enough every morning to do my hair/make-up, I wear clothes that I think are suitable. I WANT to do all of these things, but the question is, why do I want to do it? Do I want to do them because I'm striving to be someone else's perception of beauty? Or do I do them because it's my own idea of beauty?

I think that I do the things I do because I think they're beautiful/attractive, and not because someone else thinks so. Sure, maybe a handful of people think that my look is "beautiful", but that doesn't mean I'm doing it for them. I have no reason to care so much about what other people think of me. I already have people who love me, no matter what I look like. It's really important that people (girls especially) realize this, because there is no point in torturing yourself for something you don't believe in.

This discussion extends much further and perhaps I'll get the motivation to continue with this idea one day, so be watching!