Beholder’s eye…

‘Whom do you consider beautiful?’ was the focus of a conversation that broke out in one of the social gatherings at Kimironko yesterday while I celebrated with friends the success of a colleague who had successfully defended his academic project at Kigali Institute of Education. One, Nadine Uwitonze, thought of gauging her position in terms of appearance: She said ‘‘Kalisa says I’m pretty. Mbuguje says I’m ugly. What do u think?’’ Someone replied, “A bit of both. I think you’re pretty ugly.” There it was for the disappointed Uwitonze. When it comes to beauty, it’s a question of an individual’s preference and taste. You may wonder why some ladies you regard as ugly get married to a handsome man and vise versa. One man’s meat is another man’s poison, what your friend likes may not be exactly what you like. Beauty is internal and not physical. Inner beauty is considered to be proper character coupled with moral values and not just the outward physical appearance. According to Jean Kakule Sebatakane, the Managing Director of Goel Christian Book Store, “beauty is not a matter of physical orientation but good morals; before I got married I had wanted to marry a light skinned wife but right now I’m living with a dark skinned wife because I was attracted to her character and God gave her to me.” His point of view will concur with some but not most. Kenia Umubera, a 20-year-old Customer Care executive at Skynet Rwanda, said, “I personally prefer a dark skinned man, taller than me and who has an admirable smile.” Outward beauty for Umubera matters because, “the most boring thing in marriage is that the last face you see is that of your wife or husband and the first you see again when you wake up.” It’s high time that people recognized that each and every individual has a preference and taste in life, happy marriage is greatly determined by one’s choice of a marriage partner, it’s you who will live with him or her not your friends so take your time and consider your preference and not a choice as a result of influence. Those who are fond of discouraging others on the choices they make in their lives should remember to run their own race especially when it comes to choosing a spouse. Ends