Beauty is this word that is often thrown around conditionally.

It’s another category that can sometimes feel esoteric. To me, beauty is a celebration of everything in our lives—even the stuff that we shove deep down in hopes of never seeing that “ugliness” again—it’s the organic substance that fuels our gorgeous smile, and breathtaking laugh. Beauty in its rawness can’t be faked.

1. You are beautiful when you are afraid to do something, and you do it anyway. 

2. If you have been to hell and back, your resilience is beautiful.

3. Beauty is a daring action. One that is built on your authentic intention instead of being attached to the outcome.

4. Asking questions—especially “why?”—is always beautiful. Why? Because curiosity is beautiful. 

5.  If you can string words together into a sentence, and you’re brave enough to let someone else read it, that’s beautiful.

6. Flat stomachs are beautiful, absolutely, but big, soft bellies are beautiful, too.

7. It is beautiful to speak another language. It is beautiful to try.

8. Beauty is putting paint on canvas, or strumming a guitar, or capturing a stunning moment in a picture, or dancing with your eyes closed.

9. Creating is always beautiful.

10. Your eyes are beautiful. Nobody else has eyes like yours. They are deep and authentic and instantly recognizable.

11. Beauty is being brave enough to embrace your feelings- the good, the bad, and the ugly. To open yourself to the possibility that there is something magnificent there. 

12. Remember the time your best friend called you crying? Because only your voice could calm her down? That was beautiful.

13. Beauty is laughing so hard your stomach hurts and you’re yelling, “Stop! Seriously, I’m peeing!” Yes. Peeing your pants can be beautiful.

14. Beauty is not letting ignorance be mistaken for truth. Even if you’re the one in the dark.

15. Beauty is calling someone out for saying something hurtful, even if you weren’t the one getting hurt.

16. Your legs are beautiful. No, really. They are. Admire the curve of your calves, the muscles in your thighs, the peaks and valleys of your knee.

17. Letting go of a toxic relationship? Ah, what a beautiful relief!

18. You are beautiful when you rock out so hard at a concert that your neck is sore the next day.

19. Intelligence is beautiful.

20. Humor. There is nothing more beautiful than laughter.

21. Compassion is very, very beautiful.

22. Beauty is wearing an outfit so fierce that when people compliment you on it you say, “I know, right?” and then, “Oh, I mean, thank you.”

23. Strong opinions are beautiful.

24. Respecting other people’s strong opinions is beautiful too.

25. Beauty is your hometown, whether you love it or hate it, because it helped shape you who you are.

26. Beauty is telling a joke only you think is funny and laughing so hard nobody can hear the punchline.

27. Walking away from a relationship –Platonic or romantic because you know its the only way to truly love them is to stop trying to change them, and let them be who they are. That is most beautiful.

28. Deep breaths are beautiful.

29. Listening is beautiful. Choosing to respond instead of react- even if you don’t want to hear it- trusting that there is always something valuable in someone else’s words.

30. Your bare face in the morning is beautiful. Ask the people that love you. It’s true.

31. The way our bodies tell the truth—we blush when we are attracted to someone, we blink twice when we lie, we get sick when we’re pushing our mental limits—is beautiful.

32. Having faith in someone else’s word, because we know we’ve been true to our own. That is beautiful.

33. Beauty is being comfortable enough with someone else to be silent. As the character Sherry Anne in the movie Best In Show put it, “We could talk or not talk forever and still find things to not talk about.”

34. Beauty is being able to walk gracefully in high heels.

35. Beauty is digging your bare feet into the sand.

36. Beauty is sitting very still with your thoughts.

37. It is beautiful to find the strength to ask for help when you need it. No matter how successful you are. We all feel like we’re drowning sometimes, and we would all be glad to pull you from the rapids.

38. Beauty is loving your pet as much as they love you.

39. Beauty is a fresh flower in your hair.

40. The physical remnants of our life experiences—stretch marks, scars, wrinkles, and sun spots—are beautiful.

41. Wisdom is beautiful.

42. Humility is beautiful.

43. Beauty is the sweaty satisfaction of a hard workout- moving your body in the way it was meant to.

44. It is beautiful to finally tell someone your secret.

45. It is beautiful to turn the worst night into the funniest story- the ability to see the humor in the darker, sometimes neglected parts of our life.

46. Beauty is being able to truly enjoy the food you eat.

47. It is beautiful to be grateful to all the strong people who came before you: the ones who raised you, the ones who fought for your rights, the ones who were burned at the stake because they were too powerful.

48. Giving birth is beautiful. (Messy, but beautiful.) Rebirth– as many times as necessary- is also beautiful.

49. Freedom is beautiful. You are free to fill your life with the things that make you happy. You have a choice.

50. Happiness is beautiful. Never be ashamed of being happy.

Relephant:

10 Ridiculously Simple Habits for a Happy & Healthy Life.

A spiritual pitfall:

Linnea is a vinyasa yogi by heart and power yogi by discipline. She was trained to teach at the 200-hour level at Yandara Yoga Institute in Pescadaro, Mexico, where she practiced the fine art of becoming a baja beach bum (aka – letting it all go and embracing her inner goddess). She stands by the fact that although yoga is a lot about peace and love, it is also about confrontation, discomfort and being accountable for your own personal growth – body and mind. She is a wellness wizard, businesswoman, writer, foodie, fashionista, play-tress and creator. Her classes are a mix of alignment, playful discipline, and kicking your ass-ana!  “Like” Linnea Jensen Yoga on facebook/ Follow on Twitter for innovation for a vibrant, authentic, sexy life.

Image: Photo by Kim Carpenter on Unsplash