Hidden Beauty

  It is not hard to find things of beauty around us.  Most is of the "outer" beauty sort.  The kind that we first notice when seeing something that possesses a profound loveliness.  That outer beauty attracts us. It sometimes astounds us.  It can mesmerize us to the point of causing our thoughts to not be swayed.  While this outer beauty is enamoring, it is the hidden beauty that is lasting.  Outer beauty, at its best, is temporary.

  While out planting potatoes today, this message of outer and inner beauty hit me.  I found a small stone that was buried beneath the dirt.  At first glance, the stone was ordinary.  There was nothing special about it that made it stand out against all the other stones that were in the garden.  It was small, sort of oval-shaped and brown.  I started to flip it to one side when I remembered that just a few weeks ago, a similar stone was the center of a conversation I had with my little grand-nephew.  He was tossing stones in the Frog Pond when I asked him if he liked rocks and stones.  In his wise mind of a five year old, he answered "They are ok.  They are all alike..sort of boring. The only thing they are good for is throwing."  Hmmm?  Amazing thought.  All stones are good for are throwing away.  Boring things have no use.  I asked if I could see one of his stones before he threw it to the bottom of the pond.  He handed me the stone and I showed him the swirls on the outer edge and how, in this particular one, smaller stones were embedded in it.  He then took an interest in the stones and their "hidden" beauty.

  Today's stone definitely had a hidden beauty.  From the outside, it was "boring".  The drab brown was hiding a stark different inside.  Half of the stone was missing.  It had evidently been broken by my hoe or tiller at some point.  When I held the stone in the sunshine, I could see that it sparkled.  This intrigued me so I brushed the dirt from its crevices.  It sparkled even more and the cleaning allowed me to see a bit of unexpected color.  The inside was flecked with purples and blues along with the sparkly clear particles.  Wow! I admit that I do not know a lot about rocks and stones but this, to me, was a stunner!  The stone did indeed have a hidden beauty. Had it not been broken, I would have never known what was hidden beneath that dull exterior.

   That is the way it is with all things in this old world.  If we do not  give them a half of chance to shine, we may never see the secret beauty held deep within.  Sometimes we have to "scratch the surface" to find the gemstone held beneath the rough stone.

  I think I will hang onto this broken stone so I can show it to my little buddy.  Perhaps this will spark an interest in him to look at things in a different way.  First impressions are not always lasting but when we really get to know things, we can see their worth.