Beautiful things!

[exequy]

So I just posted in the banter board. Twice. And I'm pretty sure I need to write something positive now to try and convert the internal storms to nice, eco-friendly lightbulbs. So here goes.

A couple of years ago, I started a list of things I found beautiful. Many of the things on that list are small details about life that bring joy or inspiration to me and most people either overlook or don't see the same way. For instance, one of these items is rusty swingsets. I have a love of urbex and urban decay, and while I have very few happy childhood memories, they're very powerful. Not patronus charm powerful necessarily but sometimes -- and admidst all the pain during elementary school, we had a swingset in the playground that I swung on during recess. I would take off and it gave me a feeling of calm that was seriously the eye in the storm during my day. I imagined myself disappearing into the clouds and reemerging in a world in which I was happy.

I was a very sad and troubled child.

But swingsets were beautiful to me, a little piece of freedom. And after swinging, my hands would be caked in rust. We have a rusty swingset near where I live now, but that metal shrieks beyond my comfort level. Regardless, they're still nice to swing on when I need some meditative time.

Other things are finding leaves still on apples in the grocery store or seeing a stranger smile to themselves (this so seldom happens, but it is a true gem to see). I actually started a visual journal depicting some of these things and should probably start working on it again. Lots of stress, and thinking about the ways this world really is beautiful and wondrous often helps more than I would've thought it would as a kid. But I think admiring the beautiful, strange, and complex was one of the ways I survived to adulthood.

What are some things you find beautiful (and why)? They don't have to be small or unconventional - anything that brings you joy or inspiration should count.

[Celestial]

This is a lovely idea for a thread. ^^ We had a similar one a while back called the "Likes Thread" but I think it got buried.

I...I'm honestly not sure where to start. I find a lot of things beautiful, from the mundane to the amazing. Both natural and man-made can be beautiful to my eyes. So maybe I should just share a select few from my memories. Not in any order, just a few.

Waves coming in on a white beach from an azure sea. The sky above is completely clear. The sand feels smooth beneath your fingers. In the distance, there is an island with high hills. Above, the birds call. There is a gannet circling and it dives, majestically, without hesitation into the sea exactly like a white arrow. Aside form the lapping of the waves and the cry of the birds, there is nothing.

It's night time. Snow falls slowly but there is no wind. You are standing on the deck of a ferry. It is slowly going through the docklands, all lit up with orange sodium lights. It's cold. There is not a soul in sight on the docks. Nothing but white snow, fresh and untainted, covering everything.

In your room. Suddenly, a deep rumble interrupts your thoughts, rolling and stretching out for what feels like forever. Then the heavy battering of rain is unleashed on the roof. You turn off the lights and go to the window. Streaks of lightning crash down in the distance. You watch until the storm is over.

A church. You've been to so many other churches in this city but this one is different. For one thing, it's very plain. No altars, save for the one in front, and its small, but not claustrophobic. It's also full. You're just here as a tourist, to gawk, but you hear the seremon anyway, in a language you cannot understand but wish you could. It sounds amazing to your ear. But what draws you are the paintings all over the wall. Beautiful, colourful, realistic paintings, done last century, using modern techniques of perspective but without any of the abstractions of modernism. Surrounding them are traditional patterns. One painting, however, catches your eye. A funeral procession with ghostly monks. One of them looks out towards you with a striking glare. The tour guide tells you this is the artist. You feel a deep admiration for this man.

Walking through a valley, facing away from the sea. You hear the cry of a bird, possibly an eagle. You turn and two suddenly fly over you. These eagles were extinct a century ago, and were reintroduced forty years ago. They're still not common. Seeing two, so close, is wonderful.

You are standing in a ruin. It doesn't matter what. All you know is that once this was a living, bustling place, and now it's not. Those who cherished and lived here are long gone. Your heart cries out for them.

I could go on and on. One thing that a lot of these have in common, usually, is either an experience that is not often replicated or a feeling of complete and utter peace. Silence especially, can add to beauty. I find rich colours and very visual things beautiful, as I am a highly visual person. The absence of sound allows me to focus on this and also allows me to not feel overwhelmed. I also really like birds. Falling snow automatically makes anything more beautiful and profound. I also find great beauty in feelings of melancholy. Sadness is a deep, beautiful emotion but only at a distance. Second-hand sadness (when you feel the sadness of someone gone by, or someone who is not real) is the most beautiful emotion.

[Twillie]

Yup, there's an I Love thread, and it's still on the first page, so not buried at all. People are always still welcome to post on it!

For this thread, there's a number of things I could list, so for now I'll keep it short for time's sake with something immediately on my mind.

The changing seasons are always beautiful for me, no matter which season is coming or going. There's just always something reassuring about the changing weather, that the cycles that have been around my childhood and have helped shape and document my life are still there. Especially these days when the even the seasons aren't consistent and not always reliable, when the weather does actually turn cold or warm at a time when it should, it's just always one of the most exciting parts of the year for me.