By Teresa Carr
Administrative Assistant
An interesting and thought-provoking article from theodysseyonline.com Lifestyle page, “If Eyes Saw Souls Instead Of Appearances – What a world it might be.” ~by Alison Wagner, Catholic University of America.
““If only our eyes saw souls instead of bodies, how very different our ideals of beauty would be.” – Anonymous
“Our appearance is portrayed to the world every single day when we step outside our door. It determines how others see us, and how we see ourselves. In today’s society, appearance is everything. All around the world people are starving themselves to lose weight, getting dangerous plastic surgery procedures to fix their flaws, and spending excessive amounts of money on beauty supplies and makeup to cover their faces. For many people, appearance is the most important thing, and the quality of their character comes second. This generation, more than any other, is guilty of judging others based on their appearance, rather than what’s on the inside of them.
“When is the last time you looked at someone without passing judgment on their appearance? Whether you were out to lunch and judged the woman next to you for being overweight, or you judged the outfit of the man walking towards you on the sidewalk. No matter what the situation is, we are all guilty of passing judgment on people based on their appearance before actually getting to know them. We silently judge others based on their weight, height, skin color, ethnicity, gender, age, hair color, how they are dressed, and their all-around appearance, without getting to know them. Too fat. Too skinny. Too pale. Too tan. Too tall. Too short. We all do it, whether we like to admit it or not. Most times we don’t even mean to do it, but since appearance is the first thing we see, it is our first judgment.
“I believe there is a huge barrier based on appearance in our society. Appearance prevents people from getting jobs and being socially accepted. Most of all, appearance keeps people from getting to know others that may be different than them. For example, an extremely conservative, preppy woman may not go out of her way to get to know an edgy guy with an unshaved face and tattoos from head to toe. And it goes both ways. The edgy, tattooed guy most likely wouldn’t go out of his way to talk to the conservative, preppy woman. The two of them could have so much in common, but they would never find out because of the appearance barrier. This is just an example, and may not be true for every person, but I do believe that appearance keeps people from interacting with others different than them.
“I can’t help but wonder what the world would look like if our eyes saw souls instead of appearances. Maybe we would see others in a different light. There would be no distinction between man and woman, old or young. Everyone might be treated fairly and judged on who they are as a person, and the content of their character, rather than what they look like. Beauty might be based on a person’s heart, mind, and soul. We would see the human soul in its purest form, with no distractions from appearance. In the workplace we would be judged solely on the quality of our work. We might be able to get to know a person for their heart and soul, without prejudgments of their age, gender, or ethnicity. All people of the world might blend together and live in harmony. We would live in peace because there would be no judgment based on the way we looked. What a beautiful world that would be.”
The Ohio Department of Development and ABCAP want to remind Ohioans that assistance is available to help with their home energy bills. The Home Energy Assistance Program (HEAP) helps Ohioans at or below 175 percent of the federal poverty guidelines pay their heating bills. Applications for the HEAP program must be received by May 31.
Just A Thought: “If only our eyes saw souls instead of bodies how very different our ideals of beauty would be.” – Unknown.
