Many of us live in a concrete jungle. Providing infrastructural stability, buildings, sidewalks, and roads steal something important from us. As I walk my dog between houses in the morning, I’ve noticed that I linger for a few seconds when we pass one group of bushes and trees.
The variety of their species, under the influence of fall, creates a stunningly beautiful bouquet. The production of green chlorophyll in the leaves decreases, giving other pigments — carotenoids and anthocyanins — a chance to fully express themselves. The former give yellow and orange color, while the latter are responsible for red. Taken together in a complex pattern, the multitude of these tones and shades powerfully draw the eye.
Somewhere I heard the idea that through beauty — in music, nature, mathematics, dance, sports, relationships, or creativity — God speaks to us. After all, even a hardened atheist cannot deny that at such moments it is as if he has access to a secret spring from which he greedily drinks aesthetic pleasure, harmony and peace.
Whoever is behind this phenomenon, his experience is authentic, it cannot be confused with anything else, and afterwards he wants to repeat it again. By the way, the aforementioned oasis is located in front of garbage cans. But this ugliness does not spoil, but rather emphasizes the magnificent chaos of nature, ordering my inner state every time I pass by. So simple and so accessible.
I can’t help but wonder how different the quality of life might have been if, against all odds, it had been dominated by beauty. Of course, the malevolent actions of people, the tragic twists of fate, and one’s own mistakes would not go anywhere. But perhaps, woven from many threads, the stock of harmony will be so great that neither ugliness, nor betrayal, nor entropy will penetrate it.
Yours sincerely,
-Alexander
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