Susan Boyle?

For probably the only other person in the world who *hasn't* heard of or seen Susan Boyle sing - she's the latest "Britain's Got Talent" popular star.  (Although she didn't actually win the competition).  I'd heard her name, seen it in headlines on Yahoo that I didn't bother to click on, but I didn't really know who she was.  All I knew was that her name seemed to be everywhere and that there was a 'must see' video on YouTube that was going 'viral' as they say. 

But I'm stubborn.  The quickest way to get me NOT to watch something is to tell me that "everyone is watching it!!"  It seems that my taste and the taste of the world at large do not generally mesh.  So I usually am glad that I'm pretty ignorant of the latest cultural icon.

Except...for some reason I clicked through on one of those Susan Boyle headlines this morning.  I googled the YouTube video of her original performance on the show and finally watched it.  And I'm having a hard time finding the words to express how that video affected me.

Click here to watch the video

I cried as I watched the judges and audience members (who had been rolling their eyes at her because of her appearance, age and almost child-like enthusiasm) stand and cheer for her.  When she opened her mouth to sing and they heard her beautiful voice, they were shocked.  You could see it on their faces.  Eyebrows shot up, hands covered mouths in surprise, the whole deal.  It just really got to me as people were finally looking past how she looked and giving her a chance to show what she could do.  (And wow, can she do!)

The life lesson here is obvious.  Don't judge a book by its cover, it's what's inside that counts, beauty is only skin deep, all those little platitudes that everyone has heard.  But all too often the reality is that we DO judge - others as well as ourselves. 

What a shame - we've probably all missed knowing someone or hearing some beautiful music because of those preconceived ideas.