Raised

“You raise me up, so I can stand on mountains;

You raise me up to walk on stormy seas;

I am strong when I am on your shoulders;

You raise me up to more than I can be.”
(Josh Groban “You Raise Me Up”)

True ugliness is not 

a judgment of one's appearance. 

That kind of superficial perception 

is simply a subjective opinion 

based on the limits 

of society's acceptable range 

of normalcy and symmetry. 

The real ugly – the one 

that matters – is a hardening 

of the heart that keeps us 

from recognizing our basic connection 

to the rest of the universe.

When love has been drained 

or banished from the soul, 

genuine ugliness is reflected 

in hollow eyes. 

True beauty is also revealed 

through the pupils, as it emanates 

from a love-rich soul's overflow. 

It’s not about size or color, 

but light from within; 

a fire that cannot be 

decorated into existence. 

Love, then, is a freely offered gift 

radiating from within because 

it raises our own worth 

without lowering others'.

© 2015 Todd Jenkins