On Beauty

" The best and most beautiful things in the world cannot be seen, or even touched, they must be felt with the heart." - Helen Keller.

I must admit and believe the veracity of the statement yet my heart hurts and my eyes flow tears of shame because we, who have eyes that can see and complete arms to touch, do not feel the way Helen Keller felt with her heart. This world is a beautiful and wonderful place lacking only over with the exploration and compassion of the human heart.  And the more beauty glows like the star of  Bethlehem where the beauty of redemption explodes with wonder in our hearts.

December comes with the most beautiful thing in the world that could be seen, touched, and felt by the human heart as the Savior will appear in a manger of the Christian churches. A beautiful Filipino tradition of welcoming the Infant Child is a 9-day novena mass beginning on the 15th known as Simbang Gabi or Dawn Mass, Misa de Gallo or Misa de Aguinaldo. This beautiful religious tradition has gained popularity in California, New York, New Jersey,  Chicago, Illinois, and even across the globe.

There was a 19th of December Simbang Gabi celebration at the Queen of All Saints Basilica at Sauganash in Lincolnwood, Illinois. That day was also the date that I was released from a 9- month of captive love in the womb of my dear mother to begin the discovery journey of this planet Earth. The splendor spread before my eyes and the beauty mesmerized my very being when for the first time I saw the light of shall we say freedom. I felt the fascination. The will to live engulfed me to do more exploration and investigation. I wriggled with a cry of acceptance but have no clue of its aftermath.

Indeed, Beauty belongs to the beholder but is felt with the heart.