What is BEAUTY?  I experienced beauty today... 

I've had the amazing opportunity to spend the past 5 days on the beach at one of the most beautiful beaches I've ever been to. 

I've also had the pleasure of running on the beach every morning while I've been here.  So, this morning, I got up, threw on my running clothes and headed out with my trusty Ipod.  I ran for awhile, and then turned around and started running back to the house.  I suddenly stopped.  As one of my new and dear friend's songs played on my Ipod (Jonathan Pierce's "Life, Love and Happiness") - I stood there astounded and overwhelmed by the beauty that surrounded me.  The sand, the ocean, the waves, the sky...  I took it all in, and I began to cry.  I stood there on the beach crying like a baby - completely overjoyed to be right there at that very moment.  I experienced beauty today.

I kept running a bit down the beach, and another inspiring song came on my Ipod - "In Wonder" by Audio Adrenaline, and I stopped again, threw my hands up in the air and thanked God for all that He has blessed me with.  I was truly in wonder at His creation, at what He's given me, and so very thankful for it all.  I experienced beauty today.

As you've noticed, sometimes I feel the need to share some of my experiences with you all.  I head back to Nashville tomorrow, and as I head back, my head is clear, I am relaxed, and I'm ready to jump back in to all of the things that are there waiting for me.  Even as I travel back to Nashville, I won't hear the sound of the crashing waves, see the seagulls swooping down to the ocean, or feel the sand between my toes...but I will be back surrounded by my amazing friends, able to write what my heart tells me and turn them into songs, able to reach out to people through music...  There is beauty...everywhere.

So, what IS beauty?  It is everything. It is the good, the bad.  It is crying tears of joy and of pain. It is in every breath, in every atom of things that are, in every heart.  I'm so blessed continually by the way that God opens my eyes, and I'm so thankful he let me experience true beauty today.  Keep your eyes and heart open for the BEAUTY that is and around you!