I did mention in my first blogpost that I will be featuring some beauty icons as part of the regular dose of inspirations for inner and outer beauty. My goal is to write about someone who isn’t necessarily the Hollywood standard for what a beauty icon is yet whose life, example and even physical appearance would rightly name her so. It’s quite a challenge since our idea of beauty has been molded with how media brands it to be. Around two weeks ago, my husband and I were watching a random movie at home. The title of the movie was “Soul Surfer ” It didn’t quite catch my interest at first but for me, watching any movie with my husband is time well spent. By the time we finished, I knew it was something worth blogging about.
The movie was based on a true story about a young lady named Bethany Hamilton. She was born to a family of surfers in Hawaii. Her love for the sport started early on. In fact she started competing and winning when she was just eight years old. With the support of her family and friends and a love for God, there was no stopping this girl from pursuing her dreams to go pro. The future seemed bright for her up until that dark moment when a 14-foot tiger shark chewed off her left arm while she was calmly waiting for a wave to ride with a friend. She was just 13 years old then. She lost not just over 60% of her blood from the shark attack but also her left arm. She survived through surgeries without infection and fully recovered. Many believe it was her faith in God and a huge dose of positive attitude that pulled her through probably the darkest, most traumatic experience of her life.
It’s a no-brainer even for non-surfers like me that one would need both arms to balance oneself on a surfboard and do other simple things we do like dress up, feed oneself and all that. It was already a miracle that she survived through that ordeal and go on with her normal daily life. But wait there’s more! (haha! Just like those home TV shopping channels...) She braves the waters within a month after her attack and goes back to pursue her dreams of becoming a professional surfer! In two months time, she competes and wins 5th place. She continues to compete and win and within a year she wins 1st place the Explorer Women’s division of the 2005 NSSA National Championships – winning her first National Title.
“Out of the water, Bethany has grown from a young teenage girl with aspirations of becoming a professional surfer into a twenty-year old professional surfer with aspirations of becoming a beacon of inspiration and hope. Through the platform of professional sport, Bethany has been able to touch a large number of people with her message, charitable efforts, and overall spirit. Bethany just launched her own foundation,Friends of Bethany, which supports shark attack survivors, traumatic amputees, and serves to inspire others through her life story, and is involved in numerous other charitable efforts” – quoted from bethanyhamilton.com
It was not just the surviving and winning that makes Bethany Hamilton a true beauty icon. It was her unwavering faith in God who made her persevere and never give up to pursue her dreams that inspired me a lot to do the same. She didn’t turn bitter and sour with the tragedy she experienced but rather she turned to God who turned her mourning into dancing, her sorrow into joy.
Like Bethany, we all have hopes and dreams. We may have experienced some disappointments along the way that somehow have crushed our souls. But we still have both arms to raise and praise our God who gave us those desires to pursue. Don’t let those challenges make us ugly and bitter. Like her, may we all turn to God who molds us to bloom and be better than we were before.
“And we know that in all things God works for the good of those who love him, who have been called according to his purpose.” Romans 8:28
Have you trusted God to give you an extreme makeover?
To find out how, click Contact Me and I’d be willing to share the beauty secret with you!
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