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BLOG WITH CLAIRE: Beauty from within a quality to be admired

MIRROR, mirror on the wall, who is the fairest of them all?

Fess up ladies - we all want to be Snow White.

In the fairyland of our minds, we want to be treated like a princess and told we're beautiful - often.

Crown Princess Mary's whirlwind visit home, and the glimpse of that demure smile and her charming good looks ignited some of that romanticism.

Oh, to be worshipped as a kind of demi-goddess.

Oh, to confidently smile into the lenses of the paparazzi knowing that the photo will be worthy of Vogue.

Back from Lala Land, we gaze into our respective toothpaste-spattered mirrors, ignoring for a moment the demands of family (Mum, where's my lunch? Honey, have you seen my keys? Are you ready yet?).

Nothing fair there.

Being that we are our own worst critic, the reflection evokes a volley of criticism.

And like a delicate bubble floating heavenward, the fairyland pops, vanishes.

That's why Psalm 139:14 is worth holding onto: "I praise (God) because I am fearfully and wonderfully made; your works are wonderful, I know that full well."

The human body is a complex and marvellous contraption.

When we can stand in awe of its intricacies I think we can move a step closer to a healthy self confidence and body image - and cut ourselves some slack in the process.

Where best to start than the miracle of pregnancy.

From the single fertilised cell of a just-conceived human life springs organs, tissues, bodily systems - all calibrating with perfect timing.

Did you know that from just 18 days, an unborn child - or foetus if you like - has a heartbeat?

Consider the immune system.

This army-like operation lays siege to nasties, small and large. It gleans the bad bacteria from the good, mends bones and lacerations, restores bodily balance after the common cold and flu.

Sure, diseases eventually overcome the ageing body but who knows how many times our nervous system has saved us from certain death in the average lifetime.

Moving upstairs, the brain is another thing of wonder.

This lump of grey matter is responsible for a smorgasbord of functions: the ability to learn, to create, to communicate, to remember, to sit, stand, run and walk - to breathe, for goodness sake.

Computers are getting smarter by the minute, but there is still no substitute for the human brain. And animals are yet to demonstrate the same high level of functioning ability.

Clench a fist and contemplate that your hand is capable of the brute force needed to handle a shovel or pummel a punching bag as well as the finer actions of tying shoelaces or

threading a needle.

Right now, my fingers are tapping at top speed on my keyboard, converting thought to letters to words to sentences to paragraphs to this article.

When you stop and truly consider the frame we were born into, it really is amazing.

Instead of gazing into the mirror, lamenting the surface features, we can turn our attention to the fact that we are "fearfully and wonderfully made".

Irrespective of the unrealistic definitions for beauty in popular culture.

This should be the yardstick: "Your beauty should not come from outward adornment, such as braided hair and the wearing of gold jewellery and fine clothes. Instead, it should be that of your inner self, the unfading beauty of a gentle and quiet spirit, which is of great worth in God's sight" (1 Peter 3:3-4).

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Date: Newest first | Oldest first
fess up ladies we all want to be snow white....nope not me! There is more to life and me, substance, than being treated like a princess. Mary has given up so much to be a princess - not the life I want or wish for. I wish to be treated equal and loved and cared for - and give myself back on the same level. There is more to life than being a princess, or wishing to be one!
Posted by not a princess, 31/08/2010 5:21:40 PM, on The Examiner
Consider the immune system.....every day of my life as it attempts to kill me off....
Posted by Nonna, 31/08/2010 9:58:55 PM, on The Examiner
so nudism is ok?
Posted by Boo, 31/08/2010 10:04:16 PM, on The Examiner
Practice random beauty and senseless acts of love.
Posted by Puss in boots, 31/08/2010 10:30:12 PM, on The Examiner
I don't think it's a "fact" that we are fearfully and wonderfully made. What does it even mean to be fearfully made? Can someone explain?
Posted by Wondering, 1/09/2010 8:08:17 AM, on The Examiner
In this context, Wondering, I think `fearfully' conveys a reverence and respect.
Posted by Claire van Ryn on 1/09/2010 3:06:46 PM
Some things take so long, But how do I explain. When not too many people, Can see we're all the same. And because of all their tears, Their eyes can't hope to see. The beauty that surrounds them, Isn't it a pity. George Harrison
Posted by Yoda, 1/09/2010 9:01:41 PM, on The Examiner
How do you get reverence and respect from fear? Or is this one of those times the meaning has become a bit blurry over the years?
Posted by Wondering, 3/09/2010 4:24:24 PM, on The Examiner
Refer Oxford Dictionary: "fear: a mixed feeling of dread and reverence".
Posted by Claire van Ryn on 3/09/2010 4:38:49 PM
Why should we fear or dread how we are made? And where did the respect part come in? Isn't respect generally earned?
Posted by Wondering, 3/09/2010 10:30:08 PM, on The Examiner
I am not fearfully made! I am comfortable in my own skin, and very happy without a personified God to give me comfort...or to fear...
Posted by not a princess, 8/09/2010 4:25:54 AM, on The Examiner
We all want to be snow white? In the fairyland of our minds....oh my. Not me princess, in fact I believe that woman like you that buy into the beauty culture are responsible for our culture that is vilifing our younger generation. Commercialism and the media are creating a world where young people are nothing more than dollars in a marketing managers eye. High heel shoes that ruin posture, and bras for 6 year olds may seem a long way from your article, but it suggests to me that you are extremely naive, if you truly believe that all woman want to be adored from afar as princesses.
Posted by FTW, 10/09/2010 10:36:17 AM, on The Examiner
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Claire van Ryn's column KEEPING THE FAITH appears in The Examiner every Monday. You can blog with Claire from 10am every Tuesday

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