Awarded for Elegance by Ms. Elegance

Beauty permeates every soul.  Owning it is empowering.  Expressing it is transformative.

Besides blogging, there’s another new way to express oneself.  People are discovering Second Life as a means to re-create themselves.  They are able to release the beauty that lies within, waiting for its cue to come to full blossom.

Over five million subscribers have re-created themselves anonymously in a world where dreams can be pursued without inhibition.  Want to be a Neurosurgeon?  Be one in Second Life.  Want to try an Alcoholics Anonymous meeting?  Go to one in Second Life.  Curious about being a member of the opposite sex?  Give it a whirl and gain some compassion.

When I heard about this on a radio talk show, my first thought was, “I barely have time for this life.  Why would I create another?”

However, significant and cathartic results are arising from this concept that I readily judged as ‘narcissistic’.  For example, a young high school student, overweight and heckled by bullies, went on Second Life to create a lifestyle that allowed her to be beautiful.  She created a social life (there’s full contact with other Second Lifers if desired) that was so much fun that she began to change her attitude about herself.  In real life, she lost weight, gained social skills and floored her classmates who watched her popularity soar.

Another  example, a University Prof used Second Life to offer his students anonymity so they could freely ask “dumb questions”.  He told his students his Second Life name.  The students could go to Second Life after class and ask this (real and second life) prof the questions they would not dare ask in class, in front of peers, for fear of ‘showing their stupidity’.

Being curious and feeling the need to stay somewhat current, I decided to test this new phenomenon.  After making up a new first name and taking the steps to receive a last name from the system, I undertook to read some of the instructions about how move the Second Life Me from place to place while in the virtual environment.  Suddenly SL Me appeared.  I was gorgeous.  Did I want to change SL Me and become a Punk Rocker?  Or did I want to be a Pole Dancer at one of the local strip joints?  Or, become an Astronaut?

At this stage, three hours has fallen out of this life.  I decided I would buy a house, put SL Me in it, and shut down the operation.  I couldn’t just leave SL Me sitting in the armchair in the Welcome Chamber.  That’s when I realized that I didn’t know how to get SL Me out of the armchair to find a Realtor.   I thought I’d be clever and have the Realtor come to us…no, me…well, SL Me.  Then the penny dropped.  In order to buy a house, a different outfit, a car, etc., I had to use my real life money to buy Second Life money to buy these things.

I hit the delete button. It felt like a suicide.  I didn’t like it.

Back in Real Life, I reached into my soul and released the Real Me – SoulDipper.

This real life blog allows a release that has been building in my soul since I discovered words.  As I post more articles, I become part of a growing family of bloggers.  I discover excellent writers, photographers and communicators who are enchanting human beings.  I may not know their real names or where they live, but I see beauty and elegance within their hearts.

We encourage, support and appreciate one another with sincerity, cameraderie and enthusiasm.  Suddenly writing does not have to be lonely. We can manage our time.  We become maestros with electronic batons and return to our creative family at will.

The Most Elegant Blogger Award

One delightfully diverse family member, The Only Cin, who is one of the more established bloggers in my milieu, kindly presented me with:  The Most Elegant Blogger Award.

She brings me to a place of humbleness even though it is a fleeting flash.

I thanked her with the sincerity of a Trappist Monk, but I need to make a confession:  Cin is elegance personified.

She is a gourmet cook, she grows a garden that supports her culinary passion, she posts a photo that denotes a running theme of excellence, and has what appears to be the perfect husband and daughter.  Peek at  Cin’s link and go through her blog.  You’ll see meals she prepares that would put our 5-star restaurants to shame – starting with the elegance with which she lays her table.  She called a new French cook book a vacation, for goodness sake!

Her prose and her poetry are equally clear as glass, clean as bone, smooth as stone. (Madeleine L’Engle’s phraseology)

Elegance Award?  My confession?  Cin is l’elan d’élégance.

Wait a minute.  This means she knows what she’s talking about.  She qualifies as a bone fide giver of this award.

Okay, I’ll go and get dressed now.  On my way to the bedroom, I’ll fold my laundry and wash my porridge pot that was a tad sticky this morning.  While I’m in my en suite, I’ll do a little work on my eyebrows and see if any rogue hairs appeared during the night.

Rear Chassis Malfunction

When I return to my office, I’ll unwrap my sick little Duc le Chat who has a massive bite on his vulnerable rear carriage.  My vet, who will be ministering in the morning, instructed me to apply a liberal amount of Hydrogen Peroxide to the aforementioned wound.  Um hum.  Has he forgotten this patient?

Elegance?  Yes indeed.  Because of Cin’s generosity of spirit, every ounce of my soul feels elegant this morning.  And I suspect my Guides are sitting back enjoying some of her favourite Chardonnay or dining on Oxtail or Beguni entrees – maybe both.  They’re suspiciously quiet today.

Thank you, Cin.