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What is Beauty?
As we recover from this winter storm, and sort through its inconveniences, I'm also struck by its beauty. In my neighborhood, the trees had a luminescent quality last night, and neighbors (with their dogs Marley, Harvey, Rowdy and Tee-Tee) got together for soup, bread and conversation. (We were surprised the dogs didn't play cards; but they did wrestle.)
Last night was another example that while we may not have mountains or ocean in Indianapolis, we're surrounded by a simpler beauty, a more diverse beauty in Indianapolis, defined not by its topography, but by its simpler natural wonders, and the character and potential in its people and its diverse communities.
What is beauty? For me, it is a quality that lifts my spirit. It can be aesthetic, it can be a moment of grace, an unexpected smile; it can be an intentional act beyond oneself, for the greater good. It can be a moment in community.
Beauty is in the trees planted by our Youth Tree Team, and the working hands and smiling faces of that crew. It is how I see them five and ten years from now, today.
It is the vegetables, warm from the sun, in gardens grown on a once barren vacant lot in Martindale Brightwood. Beauty is in the heart and mind of Aster Bekele, who envisioned such a place called Felege Hiywot. It's in the rain gardens at Keep Indianapolis Beautiful--the gardens grow on a once-contaminated lot covered with crumbling asphalt, attracting butterflies and birds with native flora. And, beauty is in the public art now gracing Interstate 70 between the airport and downtown; not just for its color and distinctiveness, but also in how it was conceived, and made by the hands of emerging artists who contributed to our city, and had an opportunity to catalyze careers.
KIB sees beauty in community, and when the environment is considered… We see beauty in relationships, collaboration, and inclusion, and when those moments are filled with joy. What is beauty to you?
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Please join Keep Indianapolis Beautiful as we examine the quality of beauty throughout 2011. Connect with community members and civic leaders as we address this question on our blog through a special series called: What is Beauty? Guest bloggers from all over the city--in every walk life, profession and background--will be asked to submit an entry on the topic of beauty each week. Entries can be as broad as the concept itself or as narrow as a specific location, event, or happening. We only ask that you spark a conversation and help us define, What is Beauty?
To be part of the conversation we hope that you will leave comments and submit your own entries on the topic. For more information please contact Ashlee Fujawa.
We look forward to hearing from you!
