I read a story about a man who planted flowers. Thousands of them. His motivation was to bring  joy to his wife, who was blind. While the colors eluded her failing eyes the scent of lilacs, sweet alyssum, and lily of the valley immersed her in beauty for the soul. Which it turns out brought him happiness as well. 

 

The gesture moved me, because it meant he had given attention to her abilities rather than only her shortcomings. It was a fact that she missed any chance to take in the purples and pinks of the sky at dusk. There wasn't a way to sense the nuance of greens in a maple tree outside her window, or to anticipate the coming of scarlet leaves in the fall. But fragrance was hers to enjoy. 

 

I have shortcomings, as do most of the people in my life. I could list them for you in a jiffy, should you be curious. In fact there is a default setting in my brain that reminds me of those flaws on a regular basis. As if I would forget. 

 

Rewiring my thinking to keep their strengths in the front row takes effort. As much as say digging in the soil along the fence. It involves pushing things aside to make room for loveliness. 

 

 

Those who are guided by kindness, on the other hand, hardly even notice evil in another but pay attention instead to everything good and true in the person. When they do find anything bad or false, they put a good interpretation on it. This is a characteristic of all angels — one they acquire from the Lord, who bends everything bad toward good. Heavenly Secrets 1079, Emanuel Swedenborg