As Is

Picture day at the ballet studio made me a little queasy, to say the least.

I understand wanting a good picture of the tiny dancers. I understand that you spend a little extra time getting ready and try to look your best when you're paying a pretty penny for that picture.

What I also understood, that most of the other moms there didn't, is that these are kids. Little girls, most of them under the age of 10, were running around dressed to the nines in their beautiful recital costumes with up-dos and full makeup. And Abby's Tiny Tots class of 2- and 3-year-olds was, sadly, no exception. They felt beautiful, and their eyes sparkled beneath layers of eye shadow and liner. Their lipsticked smiles were, for the most part, comical, and the rouge on their cheeks left many of them looking like miniature drag queens.

I felt a little sick to my stomach as I watched a veteran dance mom chastise her 7-year-old for making her little sister cry, causing her mascara to run and leaving the frazzled mother with only three minutes to reapply her makeup before pictures.

My heart sank as one by one the precious, beautiful little girls in Abby's class showed up under masks of makeup that would be perfect for prom, but seemed out of place on the flawless face of a toddler.

As the girls stood in line waiting to go into the studio for the group picture, I wondered for a second if I shouldn't perhaps put a little clear gloss on Abby's lips. She suddenly seemed so out of place among her group of dance buddies as I watched all of their moms busily smudging eye liner and reapplying lipstick.

But my senses returned to me quickly enough, and I realized that I was falling victim to the same peer pressure that I hope to teach my kids to ignore. Just because all the other moms had jumped off the bridge and into a giant sea of blush and shadow didn't mean I had to. I quickly reminded myself that my daughter is only two and a half. She has a natural beauty that needs no enhancement, and that I will not hide behind lip gloss and mascara.

But besides her physical beauty, she has an innate beauty that belongs to every human. She is beautiful, inside and out, because she is made in the image of God. If she wants to wear make up when she is (much) older, I'll teach her how to apply it properly and in moderation. But until that day comes, I have some precious time on my hands to teach her where her real beauty lies.

This real beauty can't be bought at the makeup counter and can't be applied with the right brush and a steady hand. Her real beauty is in who she is, and in who she is becoming. True beauty is not merely skin deep. True beauty comes from the heart that loves and serves the Author of beauty Himself, the Lord who created us in His image, redeemed us by His blood and clothes us in righteousness. This is the beauty I want my children to seek after. This is the beauty I want to model for them.

Even on picture day.