The prettiest girl in the room

This past weekend I saw a snapshot of my mom that was taken a year or two ago. In many ways it's an unremarkable photograph - a group of women standing together posing for a picture. The composition is standard, the lighting, average. The one thing that jumps out at you is... my mother.

She's absolutely radiant... And that's not a surprise. My mom has always been the prettiest girl in the room... The thing that struck me is that she's not wearing a lick of make-up - and it doesn't make any difference. My mom isn't the type of woman to get 'dolled up'. Or perhaps her version of getting 'dolled up' just doesn't involve all of the intricacies that it does for the rest of us...

Maybe the saying that "pretty is as pretty does" is literally true. My mom is going to turn 70 this year, and she's still effortlessly beautiful. She's also a good person. And by 'good' I don't simply mean "nice" or "well liked" or "churchgoing". I mean good - with a capital "G". It has to do with how she sees the world and how she treats other people (and not just the ones who can do something for her.)

Maybe that's her secret... On the other hand, maybe she has a portrait hidden in an attic somewhere...