Beauty is Asymmetrical
I have found myself recently thinking about a discussion I had with someone years ago now. The person was talking about taking walks with their significant other. At the trailhead where they took most of these walks was an old tall and twisted tree. The tree was very striking and they had a great amount of love for this tree. This seemed odd to the person, who questioned why they would be struck by this tree that was so strange looking. In describing the tree, the person talked about how the tree had the scars of life on it. Lightning had hit it here and a branch had broken off there. The person questioned why something so twisted and mangled was, at the same time, so captivating.
Sometimes our preconceptions color our point of view. There is comfort and peace that comes from structure, order, and consistency. But often beauty is in the inconsistency, it is off balance and shows its scars. Sometimes beauty is asymmetrical.
I think about music which is often asymmetry within a symmetrical structure. There is structure and asymmetry. Both are present and share in our love for this.
When I look at the world, in the time of social distancing, there is such beauty in how people are so aware of each other. There is sensitivity. There is this understanding in so many who are thinking, “I will probably be fine, but I might spread this to someone who would not be fine. Because of this, I will upend my life. I will put aside my schedule, my order, my plan…my comfort. I will do this for the unknown other that this helps.”
I am overwhelmed by this beauty. I am overwhelmed by the thought of people standing in unity by isolating at home.
Today as I think about this idea I look across the room and see my kids. And I think about our pending period of Covid-19 time sheltering in place. I don’t know what that looks like. Our life for a while is not going to look like how it was but is going to be different. There will be a structure. There will be learning and objectives. Also, there will be impromptu dance parties, blanket forts, and sing-alongs. There will be forms and beautiful variations within. Within the uncomfortable, we will connect in a new and different way. There will be beauty. My hope for me and for you is that in a time of discomfort we can see the beauty in the asymmetrical nature of life.