The Beauty of Distance

Some things are better kept at a distance.  When I look at the moon and the stars from my back porch, I stand mesmerized by their beauty.  The moon is over 230,000 miles away, and the nearest star almost 4.24 light-years.  From my back yard, these glowing orbs are the magnificent creations of God, but if by some magical means I could be teleported to their surfaces, I would be instantaneaously obliterated by their climes.  Some things that are beautiful from a distance are deadly up close.  Ask Icarus.

Other things are far less obvious, and much less extreme.  Here's the famous painting, Arnolfini and his Bride by Renaissance painter Jan van Eyck:

From a distance, (6 feet) I would consider this paining "not too shabby." But when I view this painting from 6 inches away, I am captivated.  When I get closer, I notice more and more depth, precision, craftsmanship, detail, thoughtfulness.  Just look at the little mirror in the background!:

Here's another beautiful and famous painting, Impression, soleil levan, by the French impressionist Claude Monet: 

But when I look at it closely, when I stand inches away, there just doesn't seem to be very much to it; there's just not that much there:

In fact, if you were to show me only this portion of the painting, I would say, "Oh, yeah … I've got one of those … on my refrigerator.  My kid made it in 2nd grade art class."

Have you ever experienced this in your relationships?  Are there people in your life who, when you get to know them up close and personal, just seem less beautiful than they did when you viewed them from afar?

I ask that you not hear a judgement in those questions.  I realize that it is my proclivity to be judgmental of others especially when I finally get close enough to them to be within what CS Lewis might call their "inner ring."  That can sometimes manifest in the following statements:

"She's so shallow."
"He's not very deep."
"He's full of himself."
"Narcissist."
"They are not truly spirit-led."

As much as I would like to say that I am good judge of fine art, I am not.  And as much as I would like to think I am a good judge of character or of another's motives, I am not.  In fact, I am incapable of judging another's heart.  This is an area that is reserved for God alone.

Beauty is God's reflection regardless of the composition of the mirror.

So then perhaps it is best that I place myself at the relational distance where I can enjoy the maximum amount of God's beauty others reflect.  For some, that will mean standing light-years away in awe.  For others, it will mean walking right next to them, hand-in-hand for eternity.