And sometimes pretty

I used to watch a television series called The Highlander. Adrian Paul played an immortal Scotsman who had two major roles. He went around cutting the heads off of other immortals to garner more power, but only if he was forced to cause he was the ultimate good guy. He also always had a woman who brought out the playful side of him.

One scene I loved was when he was walking out of his Dojo with a beautiful woman on his arm when he ran into his immortal love interest. She challenged him about something and he nodded to the woman beside him saying, "She says I'm awesome."

How often do our compliments come from people who don't really know us? But they are still nice to hear.  Of course when someone who loves us says we are awesome, or pretty, we are often more likely to take it with a grain of salt fearing that it is more loyalty than truthfulness.

We owe each other more than that. When I tell Bestest he is a great teacher I really mean it. I've seen him teach. I recognize a good teacher. So when he tells me I am a good editorial assistant, or pretty why do I have such a hard time believing that?

First of all beauty does lie in the eye of the beholder, so whether he is talking about my face, or what shines through my face, I need to give him the same credit he needs to give me. Even if we are only a mutual admiration society there is much to be gained by that.

But we are so much more. I can count on his goodness and truthfulness. It makes me feel competent and safe -- and sometimes -- pretty.