BEAUTY, THE BEAST AND YOU

Alright, I wonder what's going through your mind right now. Perhaps you're wondering, "What has the film, Beauty and the Beast got to do with me?"  I believe many people in this generation are familiar with either the cartoon which was the first I watched as a very young girl way back, or with the film which has just been released as a blockbuster from its producers.

Just a couple of days ago, I watched the film and a lot of valuable lessons about relationships came back to my mind, especially about love and I would like to share them quickly with you.

I must say that I commend some of the productions of Walt Disney as they have taught better on the subject of love than some (or should I say most) of the productions of Hollywood. Here are some of the lessons you can draw from that beautiful movie:

1) Be Yourself: Beauty was unique and different. She wasn't like every other young lady in her small village. She didn't get the best but she was contented with what her dad had provided for her. It didn't matter if she didn't have the best of clothes and shoes or whatever. All that didn't deter her. She was just real. Many people didn't think she was a normal girl buy their opinions didn't bother her. She was herself.

You don't have to walk in any one's shadow to be happy or to be accepted.  No matter where you come from, who your parents are, what you have and whether or not people think you're ideal, accept you and love you. Then and only then can you attract the people who should be in your life.

2) Have a Large Heart: Despite what the Beast had done to her, calling her father a thief, locking him up, not minding her taking her father's place and becoming his prisoner, raising his voice scarring the witt out of her and all that. She could have left him out there in the woods to die when he was wondering by wolves but she forgot the past,  forgave him and took him back to the castle.

Having a heart that puts the interest of others before ours surely has a way of paying off. When we show preference and place the affairs of others before ours, we walk in one of the laws or principles of life which makes all things work for our good. The truth is that only those who make things happen for others even before they attend to themselves, do eventually get the best in life.

3) Go for Content, not just for the the Container: Today, people make the mistake of letting their emotions  blind them from really seeing what a person is made up of. Emotions are only feelings that resonate from what the five senses produce; they are never truly lasting. We were given feelings to enjoy and control them, not to obey them as though they were the king of our lives.

A person's true nature is the summation of their character, personality, temperament and the actions they take towards us. No one has ever seen God but we love Him not just because of His nature towards us and all the good things He provides us but majorly because He loved us and died for our sins. Think about it, isn't is absurd to fall for someone all because of how they look without getting to see how they behave, if not Beauty would have fallen for Gaston and not for the Beast.

4) Leverage on Your Common Grounds: One major thing that further brought Beauty and the Beast closer and helped them become good friends was their love for reading. Beauty loved reading anything readable, well especially romantic novels and it was this common ground of reading that really brought in the Beast into her sphere. It made their friendship stronger and that's how what wasn't there before eventually became present, love.

You have got to find out attributes about the other person that complement yours. Look out for things you would enjoy doing with them and not things that could make you bored or uninterested.  A good friendship/relationship that would become worthwhile always grows strong on the leverage of some common ground.

5) Set People Free: When you  truly love someone, you let them be who they are or who they want to be. You don't dictate or manipulate them. You don't take it upon yourself to change them into what you choose. You are not their Messiah. You must recognize that only Him can change any human. No mortal can change another mortal.

Accept people for who they are. It tells them you truly love them and that could inspire them to become better. Don't struggle to keep someone with you. Love them enough to set them free.

6)Say that Confession: The Beast had come to love Beauty for who she was and had confessed it to her though indirectly, knowing she could find it hard to accept his affection even as a Beast but he let it out of his mouth because he had become comfortable with her and hoped for the best. Saying it wasn't all that was needed but it was a major step because the spell would only be broken when Beauty confessed the same to him.

For love to work, it has to be mutually shared. First it should be initiated by the man and then consented to by the woman, not the other way round. Don't let anyone play with your heart. If they don't come out straight that they want your love, do not assume they love you, never. Also, don't force your love on anyone. You're precious, no one deserves you if they haven't opened their heart to let you know they accept you.

These six simple points are some of the love lessons you can draw from that movie. If these were seemingly lacking before now in your life, why not give them a chance and see yourself becoming a better person and more importantly, getting the kind of relationship you would love. Stay blessed.