My Beautiful People

This is a sort of prose 'poem' I composed off the top of my head this afternoon. I was thinking about how beautiful people are, how detailed and exquisite God's craftsmanship is, and how it blesses me to look at it, and I just started writing about (some of) the beautiful people I know. I wrote about some of them as they are now, and about some of them as I have known them and as I know they can be again.

{Aug. 10th Note: I have edited and added to how it was originally; below is the edited version. And I will most likely continue to add to it in coming weeks - I know many beautiful people :) ! There is not necessarily a particular order, though I have tended to edit related people to be in groups. The paragraphs mostly just flowed from pictures of people I love that popped randomly into my mind's vision.}

"My Beautiful People"

I love how people are so beautiful.

I love Mrs. S's hair, flecked with a bare sprinkle of silver,
how it falls in a dark wing above her forehead.
I love how her words are always soft
but always significant.
How she tilts her head
and makes everyone who talks to her feel like
they are special.

I love how Austin's grin is worth a million dollars.
I love the little wrinkles at the corners of his eyes
and how he is one of the greatest examples of humility and undemonstrative compassion I have ever known.
How his eyes are sometimes contented green,
sometimes quiet caramel,
and sometimes snapping black.
How his thick hair is that dark gold color,
and how he absently plays with that lock in the front when he's thinking.

I love how Ava's brilliant deep blue eyes fill up half her face
and how her huge smile fills the other half.
How she braids a strand of her hair away from her face sometimes,
and how she ducks her head and does this awkward sort of dance up to you
when she wants a hug.
I love how perfect she is for Austin.
I love how understanding she is,
how easy to talk to,
and how she's the one I think of when I have a desire to do something really wacky or childish,
knowing she'd understand perfectly
and would probably do it with me.

I love how Bro. Dennis's laugh fills him up
and fills the room up
and fills the listeners up
so that they want to laugh too, even if they don't know what's going on.
I love his caramel eyes
and brown hair
and sideburns.
How he's so square and stocky.
I love how he cocks his head and glares at you with his eyebrows way up, when you've done something without thinking and he wants to call your attention to it, but in a teasing way.
I love how he thinks about everything, analyzing it until it's broken down and he can look at all it's parts
and then show them to someone else in a way that they can understand it.

I love how gentle-faced
and dignified Mrs. Carrie is.
How slim and tall she stands,
and how she can get from one spot to another quickly, but never appears to be hurrying.
How quietly elegant her style is.
I love her silky hair
and how it falls to her shoulders with gentle waves towards the bottom.
I love her dark-honey eyes
that observe keenly,
and speak volumes if you have the eyes to listen.

I love Oliver's passion,
his dreamer's heart.
How his grin could light up a dungeon
and how his black eyes squint when he is really smiling,
or get big when he's passionately trying to describe or get a point across.
How his black hair and tan skin make him look great in white.

I love Toby's humility,
his resilience,
and his quiet passion for the spread of the Gospel.
I love his blue eyes and dark blond hair,
his kind smile,
and the way he coins phrases or starts using already-invented ones in such a way that use of the expression seems to spread and become part of the every-day vocabulary of most who know him.
I love how devoted he is to Lindy,
how respectful he is of her,
and yet how they goof off and tease each other almost like siblings might.

I love Lindy's powder-blue eyes.
How healthy and gentle her face is.
I love how she's so powerful,
but so lady-like.
How she bends over backwards to make
the others in the situation feel comfortable.

I love Mrs. Renae's deep brown hair
and how it has red-ish highlights.
I love how when she's laughing,
her left eye squints just a little bit.
I love how she rejoices in life like a child might.
How she worships the Lord like no one else is watching,
or like the whole world is.
How she dresses so classy,
and modestly too.

I love how deep 'my brown-eyed boy's eyes are,
and how deep his voice is,
though he is so young.
I love how his hair is such a rich dark brown -
almost black.
How great he looks in dark teal.
How polite he is.
How, when he laughs, it's a squeak deep in his throat;
how it contrasts with his speaking voice.
I love how he gets in 'beast mode' when there's a job to do -
how his focus narrows so that he gives his best to do his part.

I love Piper's freckles,
her round-ish face,
her piercing eyes,
that are so wise.
I love her meek and quiet spirit,
her calm sensibility.
How she stands at an angle and looks at the ground ahead of you and sort of leans toward you with her near arm out just a little, when she wants a hug.
How when she wears her glasses,
she looks even cuter. And sortof scholarly.
How she is the perfect size to hug and prop my cheek on the top of her head,
but how she will probably end up taller than I am.

I love how Abigail is so brown and healthy-looking
from all the time she spends outside.
How she sometimes sweeps a little of her hair away from her face on either side in a sortof vintage style.
How she closes her eyes and then sweeps her head to face you and opens them dramatically when she's making a point.
I love how she blinks and sniffs at the same time,
how it wrinkles her nose and shows off her freckles
and her lovely eyelashes at the same time,
but how she doesn't even know she's doing it.
I love how she's always got a pun or corny joke to share.
How her giggle sounds light and free and pure.

I love Law's eyes; that amazing summer-forest color - a patch of sky, a few leaves, a glimpse of loamy earth.
How his light brown hair sweeps across his forehead like his mom's does.
I love how tall and broad-shouldered he's getting to be,
how brown he is from working outside in the sun all the time.
I love how when he smiles it lights up his whole being,
how his eyes get big and round and excited.
How fun-loving he is,
and yet, how responsible
and serious he can be when it counts.
I love how the joy of the Lord seems to fill him up
and pour out of him to bless and admonish others in his life.

I love Archer's sharp brown eyes, one of only two pairs I've ever known that could truly be said to 'twinkle',
how he smirks when he finds something amusing,
making that slight dimple come out in his cheek.
How he rocks back on the chair legs when he laughs, his chuckles starting as a squeak in his throat, his eyes squinting, and his nose wrinkling up.
How carefully and yet unknowingly he lifts a wing of dark almost-black hair away from his eyes with his fingertips, or rakes his hand through the top and pats it down.
His biting sarcasm that he then softens with a smirk and a twinkle as he cuts his eyes slyly at the victim.
His heart for service,
and how he doesn't back down from his decision unless presented with what he considers intelligent, compelling reasons.

I love how Julia's so pert, almost sassy,
in the way she teases her friends;
how her rude comments (that probably no one else could get away with) are her way of showing her friendship,
and how she hurries to assure you she was joking, even though you already knew she was.
How frank and honest you can count on her to be.
I love how naturally scrunchy/curly her blond hair is.
I love how she's the queen of crazy faces,
how she can make this bug-eyed stare and hold it long after you've given up staring back and are doubled over laughing.
I love those brilliant blue eyes of hers,
how she uses them with her fine blond eyebrows and
how she tilts and moves her head to be so expressive.
I love how she and Autumn (not being related at all) can be such close friends that they're like sisters.

I love Autumn's naturally scrunchy light brown hair,
her almond-shaped dark brown eyes,
how her smile shows how straight and white and perfect her teeth are,
and makes her dimples come out.
I love how she's not very tall,
but is so athletic
and sturdy.
How she doesn't brag,
but her talents just randomly come out when they're needed
and everyone thinks, "Wow."

I love Camille's strength,
not only physically,
but inside too.
How tall she is.
How thick and rich her brown hair is
and how it can get so long so fast.
I love how bright her green eyes are
and how clear and bright her complexion is
when she doesn't wear make up
and her hair is up out of her face.
How she seems so brusque
and almost tough,
but is really such a softie.

I love Bro. Mike's gray-ish hair
and short goatee
and slightly pointed ears
that earned him the nick-name, The Garden Gnome.
I love his kind blue eyes,
his short stocky build,
and how he believes in hard work
and in doing your best.
His wise,
calm,
loving,
understanding spirit.

I love Landon's good-natured spirit.
How he is the image of country-boy charm,
with his work boots, faded jeans, worn t-shirt (or button-up with the sleeves rolled up), and white-and-blue ball cap.
How that white-and-blue cap is almost as much a part of him as his name is!
How round his brown eyes are
and how high his eyebrows get when he's telling about one of the adventures that seem to constantly seek him out.
The air of hospitality,
kindness,
gladness,
and friendliness
that is part of his character.

I love how courageous Bro. Earl is,
how he can narrow his vision so that he can focus on the job at hand, and shut out the rest of life's difficulties for the time being.
I love how he always has a complement,
a joke,
or a pleasant remark
for whoever he runs into.
I love how he's so squarely built,
how he stays in shape even though his job is not one that requires much physical activity.
How his style is both relaxed and yet classic.
How he always has time to talk,
and how he will tell you if he doesn't have the answer,
but will try to help you find it.
How he's a preacher, a pastor, but he's just a regular guy too,
he's not hight-and-mighty,
he's humble,
and willing to learn.
I love his teal-blue eyes
and dark-gold hair like Austin's.

I love Mrs. Shannen's nod -
the way she bobs her head and smiles Bro. Dennis' grin when she agrees with something.
The way she says, "Goot!" instead of "Good!",
that would sound annoying on anyone else,
but is part of her.
How her short hair flips out just a little.
Her gentle spirit
and meekness.
How she's so motherly,
so kind,
how she keeps on going,
even when the going is tough.

I love the way Russell dances (almost litterally) through life,
using his flambuoyant tendency toward the dramatic (singing, acting, dancing, etc.)
to entertain us,
to put smiles on our faces,
to lighten the heaviness that life sometimes is.
How his striking blue eyes contrast with his brown hair,
and how they squint and disappear when he grins.
How he'll pull out the 'grandma voice' when he's talking to little kids,
or the Scottish accent when he's ordering at a restaurant.
How he gets so serious and technical when there's a job to do,
rushing around on his long legs like a grasshopper.
How his eyebrows raise and wiggle,
and his eyes sparkle when he's goofing off.
I love how he's joyful even when his life's hard.

I love Trent's sense of humor when you get to know him a little bit,
but how he's just an ordinary teenager otherwise.
How 'dressing up' is, for him, a white button-up shirt, unfaded jeans, and boots.
How thick and rich his blond hair is,
how quiet and observant his eyes are,
how slender he is,
and how tall he's getting to be.

I love Aron's strength, both of body
and of character.
How protective he is of his wife and child,
how he serves them
and guides them.
I love how he is such a hard worker
and such a loyal friend.
How his jet-black hair and dark eyes and deep tan skin are so striking, and
how his laugh is so powerful, but
so boyish and freeing.

I love Henley's sensitivity to people,
her down-to-earth outlook
and kind heart;
the way she draws others in, making them at home.
I love how her long, straight, dark-blond hair has natural bright-gold highlights in it.
Her big blue eyes.
How patient she is,
always trying to see the positive in a situation,
how she respects her husband Aron,
and protects her little son.
How she has chosen to stay at home and serve her family,
instead of trying to make 'her' place out in the world.

I love how Joy is so tall,
how I hug her and it's more comfortable for her arms to be around my shoulders while my arms are around her waist, even though I'm ten years older.
I love how her eyes are the color of dark copper
and her hair is just a little darker than that.
I love how she calls herself my long-lost sister because we're so much alike that it's uncanny sometimes.
How she lights up when she's telling me about something that stood out to her in her Bible reading.

I love Justice's confidence,
how his voice has such a low pitch that, if you're not used to it, it almost makes you want to plug your ears to lessen how much it makes the room vibrate.
I love how his Irish blood comes out
in his stocky form,
curly brown hair,
bright blue eyes,
pale freckled skin,
and passionate nature.
I love how tender-hearted he is toward things of God;
how he has a heart for young people,
and how he has such a gift as a teacher.

I love Noel's curly black hair.
I love how she looks up to Justice, her husband.
How she defaults to him in any decision.
I love her child-like simplicity,
and how she tries to make the best of a hard situation.
What a grateful spirit she has
and how matter-of-fact she is.
How she's willing to serve wherever she can,
and how quick she is to point out other's talents and strengths.
I love how she tucks her chin, cocks her head, raises her eyebrows, and looks at her listeners from the tops of her eyes when she's making a point.
I love how she leans her head back and giggles.

I love how Trissy's hair is so straight
and fine
and long
and golden in the sun.
I love that she doesn't wear make up,
but is still attractive.
I love how she makes that self-deprecating smirk
and shrugs when she does or says something that everyone except she thought was funny and they all laugh.