Finding Beauty Amid the Ugliness

A long time ago, my daddy told me a story about a man who always found the good in everything. In his town, a very mean man, who treated people terribly, died. At his funeral, people were recounting all the awful stuff he’d done. The man who found the good in people stood up and reminded everyone if they didn’t have something good to say, they shouldn’t say anything at all. Everyone laughed at him and told him there was nothing good about the mean man, and that even he wouldn’t be able to say something nice about him. He thought for just a second and said, “Man, he sure could whistle pretty”.

I want to be like the man who found good in everything. It’s really easy to find bad stuff. It’s not always so easy to find the good. But it’s so important to be looking for the good anyway. There’s beauty all around us, even though there’s a lot of ugliness. And when we find it, we need to point it out. Hopefully, we can help others stop focusing on the negative stuff so they can live happier, more hopeful lives. Because it sure is hard to be happy, or hopeful if you’re always looking for the worst around you.

Just my (and my daddy’s) two cents.

In case you need to hear it right now, you’re one of the beautiful things. And I’m grateful you’re out there, wherever you are.

Braundi