I'd been thinking of getting my teeth fixed, so I went for a free consultation to check out what could be done and at what cost. At the end of the consult, the doctor told me 'I hope I didn't make you feel bad' why? I had only gone to check my teeth and then I was told I had a facial deformity. I had suspected this before and naturally began to feel sorry for myself, but even much more, it made me begin to think about beauty and ugliness in a new way.
People like the platitude that goes 'Beauty lies in the eye of the beholder' however there are beauties and uglies that lie in the eyes of ALL beholders. This has nothing to do with certain races or certain features on a body or face. It is all about genetics; bone structure, cultural elements and mechanical incidents.
My worldview begins with God creating the world and sin corrupting creation. In light of this, it makes a lot of sense, when I consider that sin actually makes us ugly, both inside and outside. God's love and grace heals both in His time. God saves the spirit which is twisted, ugly and only tending to death and will allow this corrupted body to die, allowing us to be raised in new bodies.God also saves the corrupted body, through miraculous healings and the intelligence of Doctors to correct some of these conditions.
From my consultation and further research I made, even if you don't share my worldview, it is easy to see that the people we would choose as being ugly or not very fine, perhaps plain, would have one deformity or the other. These deformities are usually passed down by genetic accident, e.g I inherited my dad's deformity but my other sisters didn't) Some obviously are caused by mechanical injury, blows, fire, car accidents e.t.c.
Understanding all of this, makes me see ugliness/beauty in a new light. None of us chose our faces or bodies when we were born. Most of us did not choose to be in accidents that deform us neither to be born into cultures which do so. Therefore it begs us to be kind to one another. It certainly would not get rid of the ugliness but it will stop you from being ugly. It's not about looking beyond the ugliness, which you can't but welcoming it knowing that in the end, age and time will deal with us all accordingly.
As someone who believes in Christ, It makes me hate sin much more, it makes me long for an incorruptible world, one which we have been promised. The most wonderful thing is despite all these imperfections, we are still the same in value, we call some of these imperfections quirks, and people even love us for these particular flaws. This is what you get with a GOOD, Wonderfully and Fearfully made product :)
Quick Questions
Will you correct your deformity?
The Doctor told me I would have to lose about 8 of my teeth and then break my bones to fuse things together properly. OMG. I don't think I'm going to risk this especially in the light of what I know. Many have done it and the change is really remarkable, but there is no guarantee I would like my new face, no matter how fine it is :)
How do I acknowledge ugliness
Humans know right from wrong. We will always naturally gravitate to what gives us the most pleasure, be it in what we see, hear, taste. One thing I try to keep at the back of my mind is, 'we did not create our looks' It could have been anyone. If health is being affected, then encourage them to get these conditions corrected. Also, never forget that beauty on the inside is much more sustaining and attractive in the long run.
