“Because beauty, and the noticing and making of it, is an act of defiance, of rebellion. It says that hopelessness and fear do not have the last word,” writes John Roff.
Johannesburg, South Africa (08 December 2022) – It is the Christmas season in South Africa. Locally, ongoing load shedding, potholes and politicking remind me that this is a nation in crisis. Globally, war and all manner of other ills that seem to accompany the human condition are playing out.
Tragedy and a sense of gloom are tangible.
Therefore I am, with greater intensity than usual, pursuing beauty. Because beauty, and the noticing and making of it, is an act of defiance, of rebellion. It says that hopelessness and fear do not have the last word.
I notice the beautiful in people, in nature, in rocks, the swelling wonder of a summer cloud. I make music, because it is beautiful, I show people beautiful rocks, insects and plants, I go for walks and enjoy simple pleasures. I pursue beauty.
Because beauty and hope are interwoven, because there is a transcendence that becomes tangible through beauty, because practising beauty ushers in happiness, I am choosing to live this advent season with beauty in mind.
Because pursuing and practising beauty is an act of light.
Yes, beauty is an act of light.
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