Skin

Sunday Scribblings writing prompt: ...SKIN...

Upside down on the sidewalk, legs flailing, the hard shell weighing down heavily so that the jet black beetle cannot roll over.

Hidden within the safeness of a hardened old green shell, the soft body of the turtle cowers. Predator is close, turtle is safe while he hides within himself.

The gossamer wings of the dragonfly glow golden in the morning sun. Delicate, fragile and beautiful.

Behind a veil her skin is radiant. She blushes, but no one sees.

Millions of dollars a year are spent on skin care & cosmetics world wide. The focus is on beautiful skin, pure skin, perfect skin. Yet not many focus on what really matters: the heart which reflects our inner attitude. “It is only with the heart that one can see rightly; what is essential is invisible to the eye” wrote the wise Antoine de St-Exupery.

Too many people hide behind a smile, or a frown. Too many hide their authentic selves, wrapped up in their hard outer shell, which is hell without the s.

I look out at the children, a rainbow of faces sitting in a circle on the morning welcome mat. As we say good morning in all the languages represented within this classroom, I smile. We are world travelers without ever leaving this one room.