Beauty.

It's said that beauty is in the eye of the beholder.  I won't dispute that.  My question is how do we even know something of beauty?

When I say 'beauty' I mean more than just pleasing the senses.  Beauty is what we distinguish from the plain or ordinary.  Moreover, it is beauty's complete otherness that is compelling.  Especially when juxtaposed with the ugly.  My belief is that what we know of beauty comes from One who is completely other.  Thus when I say God is beautiful, I am saying He completely stands out from all else.  This is clear when we look at what humanity has wrought, and more so the mess I've made.  I long for His beauty even more.   Trouble is, many don't know a beautiful thing when they see it (beauty, after all, being in the eye of the beholder), and it's a terrible thing to be in the presence of Beauty and not know it.