True Beauty

I recently had a simple, yet life altering experience. It has caused me to carefully consider and reflect upon my perspective of others and of myself. As a result of it, I have pondered many times what constitutes true beauty, and the gross misunderstanding and vain perception wrought by society concerning this topic.
As I was entering a laundry room to simply move my clothes from the washer to the dryer, I just happened to notice from behind a well dressed girl, whose hair looked beautiful. Guys my age are always scoping out territory. It is what we do. haha. Anyhow, as the girl suddenly turned to look at me as I entered the room, it quickly became evident that she was a burn victim, and the side of her face was disfigured.
Suddenly, a thought entered my mind. It came subtly, yet powerfully. 'How pathetic, ridiculous, and horrible is it that this girl, whose smile is so warm and demeanor is so kind, is not viewed as beautiful by society? How despicable is it that because of an accident that likely happened in her childhood, 99 out of 100 guys would not even think of asking her on a date?' These thoughts have not left me, but have left me re-evaluating myself. I have realized how greatly society and the world's version of "true beauty" has affected my own perception and perspective.
I do not wish to imply that I do not value or respect those who dress well, and desire to take good care of themselves. However, it is of my opinion that we ought to value less as a society what is largely an accident of birth, and focus on the significance of beauty which one acquires, a beauty which is not found at the end of a scalpel or at the end of a clothing aisle at Abercrombie and Fitch.
It is not wrong to be beautiful, but it is not a requirement to healing the wrongs of the world. As I think of some of my greatest heros who have made the greatest difference in this world, they have largely done so through the greatness of their lives rather than the style of their clothing, or the features of their face. In fact, one of my greatest heroes is President Abraham Lincoln, who once declared himself "If I were two faced, would I be wearing this one?" He was considered by many contemporaries to be a homely man. However, he is a man who is remembered with feelings of holiness by those of his homeland.
I have sometimes wondered how different we would be if for just one day we could view the world through the eyes of God. How would we view others? How might we view ourselves? It seems to me that His view of beauty is quite different than the view of the world.
This life is a time to learn what true beauty is.