Ever Easter

If I knew then what I know now,
I would've told you I loved you and how.
I would've kissed your cheek every day,
I would've laughed your grouchiness away.
I would've learnt, at your hand, the art of cooking,
Instead of saying "Some other day" and not looking.
I would've tried to be the daughter you wanted.
Affectionate and gentle, yet by you not daunted.
I would've put in some serious one-on-one quality time,
Taken you on a trip to the moon, given you reason and rhyme
To be proud of me every single day,
As I transpose your wisdom, doing things my way.
I would've told you how proud I am to be
Your apple, your pearl, your one and only.
Most of all I would've told you,
How much I would be missing you.
For without you now in my life,
It feels much like deep in my gut a knife.
Yet I know you are never very far away,
For you reside within my heart, lodged in my DNA.
All that I am, the graces I've been bestowed,
It's because of you, Dad, to you gratitude is owed.

So if you think me a woman wise, strong and wonderful,
It's just that I've been blessed by my fathers in ways bountiful.
With love unconditional and life everlasting,
I arise each new day to a radiant, Easter morning.

Cultivating beauty

When I read the article Skinny But Fat in last week’s Urban about body parts that transgress the “perfect body” standards of beauty, I of course first checked to see which ones I was guilty of , give ‘em a little squeeze and go “Too bad” before I resignedly but happily went about my day.

Arm scallops, buffalo humps, bat wings, neck wattles… good if you don’t have them but it’s not the end of the world if you do. Or is it? Judging but the measures recommended in the article, it would seem so. Expensive treatments, surgery even.

This was for me a “It’s a crazy world” moment and reminded me why I rarely read beauty magazines any more.

While strolling through the National Museum to catch the Greek masterpieces from the Louvre yesterday morning, I have to say I fleetingly wished I lived in that era for Aphrodite, the goddess of love, had a figure not too dissimilar from mine. Wow, I’d be considered body beautiful then. Goddess material. Way cool.

One of the things I love about being in my forties is a growing and equable acceptance of my self – mind, body and spirit.

I’ll never be perfect but I am loved and accepted for who I am (thanks to JC), so I don’t give.

Sure, I do bemoan my child-bearing hips and Rubenesque thighs, especially when I am clothes shopping and cannot find much to fit, but cultivating inner beauty is of much more consequence to me.

I aspire to be clothed in humility, patience, perseverance and deep inner strength like Mother Mary.

Or to be faith-filled, wise and courageous like Queen Esther, saving her people from destruction.

Or attentive, loving and generous like Mary Magdalene and thus be able to see Jesus face to face.

While I believe as a woman I should always take pride in my appearance and make an effort to look presentable, I prefer to spend time on beauty tips that Sam Levenson wrote for his grandchild:

Time Tested Beauty Tips

For attractive lips, speak words of kindness.

For lovely eyes, seek out the good in people.

For a slim figure, share your food with the hungry.

For beautiful hair, let a child run his or her fingers through it once a day.

For poise, walk with the knowledge you'll never walk alone.

People, even more than things, have to be restored, renewed, revived, reclaimed, and redeemed; Never throw out anybody.

Remember, if you ever need a helping hand, you'll find one at the end of your arm.

As you grow older, you will discover that you have two hands, one for helping yourself, the other for helping others.

The beauty of a woman is not in the clothes she wears, the figure that she carries, or the way she combs her hair. The beauty of a woman must be seen from in her eyes, because that is the doorway to her heart, the place where love resides.

The beauty of a woman is not in a facial mole, but true beauty in a woman is reflected in her soul. It is the caring that she lovingly gives, the passion that she shows, and the beauty of a woman with passing years only grows!

Celebrating your senses

Do you make use of your senses in a way that celebrates life?

Or do you merely use your senses in a strictly functional way, using them only to avoid potentially dangerous situations?

Going about your day on auto pilot, rushing around, your brain too distracted to really register all the different sights, sounds,tastes, smells and sensations, your spirit completely unmoved by your environment.

If it is the latter, then you are not using your gifts, your senses and your intellect, to experience life to its fullest potential.

You are also not giving thanks to the Creator for His bountiful gifts in the way that thanks should be given.

St Irenaeus said, "The glory of God is man fully alive."

If we believe in God and we see Him in our lives, then this relationship we have with our Father gives us life and enables us to enjoy His goodness when we participate in life, never forgetting that He is the source of all activity throughout creation.

Can we claim to be fully alive if we do not seek and find beauty in all things, good and bad?

Is it possible to have a vibrant, intimate relationship with Jesus when we do not engage our senses and move toward what is true and what is good in life?

So next time you watch the sun set, smell your mother's stir-fried ginger chicken wafting through the air, hear the delighted laugh of a child, feel the cool breeze caressing your skin or savour the last sip of coffee on your tongue, stop and contemplate, live in the moment and say a small, quick thank you to the One who made all this possible.

Then you will come to your senses like the blind man who was given the gift of sight by Jesus and start seeing with the spiritual sight of faith... and celebrate.