eye of the beholder

approx. 5 AM question from one of my best friends: what is beautiful?

granted, it was super late/early and we were already half asleep. granted, i think i replied with some semi-conscious tangent about perception and what kind of value we see in something that makes it beautiful to us. but it's really a good question. it has me stumped.

to a point, my sleeping mind had it right, i think; it's all about what we see. a perfect white egg is beautiful because it's identical to all the rest in the carton. an antique piece of furniture is beautiful because it's well-loved and has character. fire is beautiful because it's dangerous. gemma (above) is beautiful because she is one of my ideas of perfection.

i don't have anything to conclude with really, because i don't think there's an answer. but it's still pretty cool to think about.