Asymmetric Simplicity

It is said that a beautiful face is made-up of symmetric parts. Features that are perfectly in proportion and inline with adjacent features and corresponding parts. A pair of eyes are set at a precise distance. They are separated by the bridge of the nose. A smooth line then follows downward giving way to where the nose starts and stops at just the right place. Below are a set of lips that curve, swoop and pout with that deep pink hue. Flesh tones and bone structures that society has us believe are beautiful. A standard by which we judge others. More precisely, a standard by which many of us judge ourselves. Often people are too critical of others and even more often, we are too critical of ourselves.

Millions of people scoff at that person looking back at them in the mirror. A mere reflection of our outward appearance. A mere "shadow" of who we really are. A shadow that sometimes casts a dark light over the real beauty within. An inner beauty that can be hidden and struggling to shine outward. Not just for the world to see, but for you to see next time your eyes meet that familiar/unfamiliar face looking back at you in the mirror. A simple outlining image that we make far too complicated to view, let alone happily accept.

My niece who is just a little over 2-years-old is lying on the carpet next to me. We are playing with Mrs. Potato Head. I switch out the glasses for a pair of blue eyes, take away her goofy hair and add a dressy hat to hide her...ahh...round potato shaped head. Instinctively I am making Mrs. Potato into a hottie. (Hot Potato?) At the time I am unaware that I must be mentally programmed to seek out beauty. My niece on the other hand wants the large glasses, goofy hair and the enormous nose that takes up much of Mrs. Potato's face. When I complete my master piece, I turn Mrs. Potato around to get my niece's opinion. Giggling, she says "D, that's silly".

It's not until that moment that I realize how different our Potatoes looks. To her, MINE looks silly. She overlooks my attempt to turn Mrs. Potato into a catch. She giggles at the effort I put into trying to make Mrs. Potato look beautiful, when the real beauty of Mrs. Potato is not her face at all. My niece sees the inward beauty of Mrs. Potato. She sees the silly factor. She sees the fun. She sees all the good things Mrs. Potato has to offer. She doesn't look at her outward appearance really. She looks below the surface, below the "skin". She peered inside and took me along for the ride.

I noticed how her baby face looks similar to a Potato Head toy. Oversized facial features tightly drawn onto a round canvas. Not even Leonardo da Vinci himself could create such a masterpiece. Technically it's asymmetric, but to me, it's one of the most beautiful faces I've ever seen. It's simple. It's perfect. It's a face I love. I'm admiring her long lashes and rosy cheeks when I hear "play me", she says. I smile and say "yeah we can play some more". She runs to get a bag full of building blocks. Little square plastic boxes are dumped out, scattering all around me and some even on top of me. She sits down in the middle. Looking on from the kitchen, my sister says "she adores you". As I begin to build an asymmetric tower, I think to myself...the feeling is mutual.