Beauty in imperfections

Have you ever felt frustrated or overwhelmed by the brokenness of our world?   Are you burdened by either your own suffering or  by the hurt you see in others?  Some weeks it's difficult to see how you will get through it all.  Life is difficult indeed. And yet... in the middle of it all, there is the beauty of a creation, of a Creator, and of a hope that feels both real and miraculous.

Recently, two works of art inspired and reminded me of the gift even our broken world offers.  The first jolt came in the form of Annie Dillard's words about imperfection.  Read for yourself...

“I am a frayed and nibbled survivor in a fallen world, and I am getting along. I am aging and eaten and have done my share of eating too. I am not washed and beautiful, in control of a shining world in which everything fits, but instead am wondering awed about on a splintered wreck I've come to care for, whose gnawed trees breathe a delicate air, whose bloodied and scarred creatures are my dearest companions, and whose beauty bats and shines not in its imperfections but overwhelmingly in spite of them...” - Annie Dillard

The second is the gorgeous time-lapse film that shows not just beauty in wilderness, but in city life as well.  I love the juxtaposition of the images and the beauty that "shines not in its imperfections but overwhelmingly in spite of them." (Be sure to click on full screen!)

Very Little Stars from Timelapse, Inc. on Vimeo.

Life moves pretty fast, but I hope that you're "getting along" and finding beauty in the imperfect.