The Dame

My love for Julie Andrews is somewhat unexplainable. I just love that dame (a female knight – literally.)

But recently I was blessed to go to an Evening of Conversation with Julie Andrews. And as I walked into the beautifully adorned Chicago Theater while the music from the ball sequence when Cinderella walks into the palace plays, it suddenly hits me: beauty. Beauty is what a love about Julie.

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When the helicopter rounds on her in the mountains and the orchestra rises to meet it at the beginning of The Sound of Music: beauty. When the father is able to show his children love again because of his life lesson from Mary Poppins: beauty. When she tap dances the elevator up and down as a roaring Thoroughly Modern Millie: beauty. When she sing-speaks in Princess Diaries 2 like a whisper of her golden days: the sweetest hint of beauty.

I once had a friend tell me, “She’s not really that person you know.” “I know.” “The woman in those movies – that’s not really her.” “I know.” “She’s not really like that in real life.” “I know.” And I do know that famous people are not the characters they play. But just like Hanson is my favorite band because of Jesus, Julie is my favorite actor because of Jesus. Jesus uses her to lead me to beauty.

Jesus/God/Holy Spirit is the most beautiful thing – ever. E.V.E.R. Sunrise over the mountains? Breathe taking. Timelapse in high def of the stars moving through the sky? A jaw-dropping wonder. A thundering wave making a perfect circle as it crashes in on itself? There are no words. Women? Holy Smokes. But compare them to Jesus and they can’t even hold a flame. So minuscule.

Jesus likes to show us parts of him and that’s why we have so many stop-and-stare-glories on Earth. He likes to show off his beauty, his generosity, his power, his gentleness, himself. So he’ll use whatever he can to make that happen. And for me, he uses Julie Andrews. It doesn’t matter how many times I watch her singing “Your Crowning Glory” in Princess Diaries 2, I cry every time. Just thinking about it now I have tears rolling down my cheeks.

What’s Jesus doing to show off for you these days? Think of the things you love most, I bet he’s there.