Recognising beauty - Mirror, mirror on the wall

BECAUSE beauty is such a subjective thing, it is impossible to be definitive about it, though that has not stopped us trying.

A poll published today that names actress Audrey Hepburn as the most beautiful woman of the past century can be seen as a bit of fun even if it is utterly discredited by the fact that all of the women named come from such a narrow band of humanity – they are either English or American and all are English speakers.

If hope is one of the ideas that sustains us all then the search for beauty – to recognise it, to know that it is so much more than just a physical quality and to celebrate it – is one of humanity’s enriching journeys.

It is by being open to beauty that we become some part of what we might be.