Driving to a meeting this evening I heard a rather insightful story on the radio. A young lady had been proposed to over the weekend and tweeted about how she could not wait to set up her Pinterest page for the wedding. Needless to say, a follower opted to weigh in with the following:

“I hope my marriage is more beautiful than my wedding.”

In other words, the emphasis or value of the newly engaged’s wedding was placed on such things as aesthetics or perception versus the true meaning of marriage.

Hmmm…something to ponder. We tend to view many “things” in our lives this way. So I began asking myself a few questions.

Why is it important to have a large house with more space than you know what to do with, flawlessly decorated? Why not have a loving home, warm and cozy, with just enough space?

Why do we feel the need to paint a pretty picture on Facebook about our lives when in essence we ALL have baggage and struggle at some point?

Why, as females, do we place so much emphasis on hair, nails, make-up, clothing and shoes? Always covering up the beauty on the inside versus exposing our charming, elegant and amazingly true self?

Why is it we don’t see how beautiful life really is without all the “stuff”? We complicate the simplicity of our life with “things” as opposed to valuing ourselves and others.

My wedding day was gorgeous – the second best day of my life next to Gia’s birth. But my marriage far exceeds the value we placed on that special day 15+ years ago.

And today, there is nothing that could be more beautiful than my life – no dollar value placed on it. Every moment, word, event, thought, dream – it all counts. And the sum of all those parts equal something greater than imaginable.

My hope is that you see your life as I see mine – la vita e bella:)