Nature is Beautiful | Teen Ink

Nature is Beautiful

March 15, 2013
By BlossomVonYumYum BRONZE, San Jose, California
BlossomVonYumYum BRONZE, San Jose, California
3 articles 2 photos 2 comments

Favorite Quote:
"Human felicity is produced not so much by great pieces of good fortune that seldom happen, as by little advantages that occur every day." ~Benjamin Franklin

"There are two things to aim at in life; first, to get what you want; and, after that, to enjoy it. Only the wisest of mankind achieve the second." ~Logan Pearsall Smith

""Happiness is an imaginary condition formerly often attributed by the living to the dead, now usually attributed by adults to children, and by children to adults." ~Thomas Szasz

"It is with true love as it is with ghosts; everyone talks of it, but few have seen it." ~Francois de La Rochefoucald

"Life has taught us that love does not consist in gazing at each other but in looking outward together in the same direction." ~Antoine de Saint-Exupery

"Promise me you'll always remember: You're braver than you believe, and stronger than you seem, and smarter than you think." ~Christopher Robin, Winnie-the-Pooh (A. A. Milne)

"I can't believe it. My butt is in the shadow of the butt of Elvis Presley." ~Lilo Pelekai, Lilo & Stitch 2: Stitch Has a Glitch

"Marry me Juliet, you'll never have to be alone. I love you, and that's all I really know." ~Taylor Swift, Love Story

"Being deeply loved by someone gives you strength, while loving someone deeply gives you courage." ~Lao Tzu

"There are all kinds of love in this world but never the same love twice." ~F. Scott Fitzgerald

"Life is good, life is great. Always love, never hate. Break the rules, stand apart. Ignore your head, follow your heart." ~Anonymous

"What would life be if we had no courage to attempt anything?" ~Vincent van Gogh

“You know, sometimes all you need is twenty seconds of insane courage. Just literally twenty seconds of just embarrassing bravery. And I promise you, something great will come of it.” ~Benjamin Mee, We Bought A Zoo

"Sometimes, our lives can change so fast that the change outpaces our minds and hearts. It's those times, I think, when our lives have altered but we still long for the time before everything was altered--that is when we feel the greatest pain. I can tell you, though, from experience, you grow accustomed to it. You learn to live your new life, and you can't imagine, or even really remember, how things were before." ~James Carstairs, Clockwork Angel (Cassandra Clare)

"Sometimes the key to happiness is just expecting a little bit less. That way you'll never be disappointed." ~Captain Crabbe, Between the Lines (Jodi Picoult & Samantha Van Leer)

"What makes a treasure a treasure is how rare a find it is, when you need it the most." ~Marina, Between the Lines (Jodi Picoult & Samantha Van Leer)

"No one ever asks a kid for her opinion, but it seems to me that growing up means you stop hoping for the best, and start expecting the worst. So how do you tell an adult that maybe everything wrong in the world stems from the fact that she's stopped believing the impossible can happen?" ~Delilah McPhee, Between the Lines (Jodi Picoult & Samantha Van Leer)

"The act of reading is a partnership. The author builds a house, but the reader makes it a home." ~Jessamyn Jacobs, Between the Lines (Jodi Picoult & Samantha Van Leer)

"I did not think cheerleading tryouts would matter, but I was not so sure about yelling at your mother. I was certain, however, that if your mother left, it would be something that mattered in the whole long course of your lifetime" ~Salamanca Tree Hiddle, Walk Two Moons (Sharon Creech)

"There must another [Pandora's] box with all the good things in it, like sunshine and love and trees and all that. Who had the good fortune to open that one, and was there one bad thing down there in the bottom of the good box? Maybe it was Worry. Even when everything seems fine and good, I worry that something will go wrong and change everything" ~Salamanca Tree Hiddle, Walk Two Moons (Sharon Creech)

"It seems to me that we can't explain all the truly awful things in the world like war and murder and brain tumors, and we can't fix these things, so we look at the frightening things that are closer to us and we magnify them until they burst open. Inside is something that we can manage, something that isn't as awful as it had at first seemed. It is a relief to discover that although there might be axe murderers and kidnappers in the world, most people seem a lot like us: sometimes afraid and sometimes brave, sometimes cruel and sometimes kind.
I decided that bravery is looking Pandora's box full in the eye as best you can, and then turning to the other box, the one with the smoothbeautiful folds inside: Momma kissing trees, my Gram saying, "Huzza, huzza," Gramps and his marriage bed." ~Salamanca Tree Hiddle, Walk Two Moons (Sharon Creech)


American writer Amy Bloom once said, “You are imperfect, permanently, and inevitably flawed. And you are beautiful.” In other words, everyone has imperfections, and it is these blemishes that make one stunning. What one person considers a flaw, another may think of as a strength. For example, a girl with a perfect body might be suffering from depression, while a slightly overweight girl might compensate with a bright personality. I am no exception to this state of balance in the world. I do not have clear skin, but I am very optimistic, a characteristic on which I pride myself the most. I tell myself, “Hey, you might not have perfect skin, but that means you won’t eat any unhealthy foods anymore that worsen your skin condition! Sure, the loss of delectable cheeseburgers might seem tragic, but in the long run, it is good for you. Lower risk of heart disease, right?” Because I embrace all my imperfections and love myself just the way I am, I am able to live happily.

My short height is another feature that most might consider a flaw but I think of as an asset. As a fifteen-year-old at four feet eleven, I am below the average height for my age. There have been many events in my life centering around my diminutive frame, but my most vivid memory is an incident from third grade. At the school I attended, elementary students played separately from the preschoolers. When a boy saw me loitering on the blacktop for older students, he mistook me for a three-year-old and asked me to go back to the other playground. I eventually corrected his misconception and everything ended smoothly, but I’ve been giving my short height much thought ever since. Yes, being thought of as a preschooler is a bit embarrassing, but my petiteness has given me advantages as well. Because I am short, I get to sit in the front of the classroom, which enables me to see and hear the teacher better, in turn helping me focus. In addition, I am able to have my pick of future boyfriends. Because girls usually prefer dating guys taller than themselves, I am able to stand next to boys both above and below their average height without looking too awkward, while naturally tall girls have a hard time finding men even taller than themselves. My short height gives me much freedom, and this characteristic is what makes me love my body the way it is.

Nature is beautiful. God has His own reasons for creating each unique human being the way He has. People are perfect in their own way, and what may initially seem horrible may actually be a blessing in disguise. Everyone should acknowledge his or her flaws and find the good in them, as I have done with my skin and height “problems.” With this acceptance, people will be happy, and happiness is the greatest form of beauty anyone can ask for.



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