Today, I saw what is possibly the most beautiful little boy I have ever seen. He was a young Ugandan boy with the purest blue eyes. They were a shade I’ve never seen, so light they were almost approaching white. I looked at him and said without thinking, “You have beautiful eyes.” He smiled, looked down and said, “Thank you.”
When he left I told the doctor they were the most beautiful eyes I’ve ever seen. His response was, “Are you sure?” When I said yes, again I was asked, “Do you think so?” I paused for a second, wondering if this was a trick question. Eventually, I answered and said yes.
I was then told a story of a young Ugandan girl from a village not far. A couple years ago she was to be sacrificed, as she had similar eyes to the beautiful boy I had seen today. The eyes were described as eyes of “devil speakers,” as they seemed to glow in the dark. They were thought to bring evil to the village, and therefore, not accepted. This girl was not sacrificed, though she was banned and sent to an orphanage where she was later adopted.
It is interesting, the two thought processes. Here I am admiring this boy for his rare genetics, while in the presence of a different culture he is feared for his beaming eyes. Is he a beauty, or is he a beast?