The Hunchback's beauty

What is beauty?

Is beauty important for a long-lasting relationship? Can men and women remain beautiful for each other at any age? These are good questions in an era of social media and selfies. Physical attractiveness seems to be the only merit that counts nowadays and photos applications compete with each other to provide to their users more tools to make their subjects more attractive to others.

Credit: Mitchell Grafton

I do not share this festivity. I have met, along the years, beautiful women, with some I have spent a considerable amount of quality time and I am telling you, beyond any doubt, that even the most beautiful person loses their attractiveness when their behavior is vicious. Conversely, if you allow an unattractive person to express their kindness, witness and passion, soon enough their true beauty will be revealed to you.

The Hunchback's beauty

A story that I have heard once tells about a young man whose name was Moshe Mendelson, the famous German philosopher, who was far from being handsome or physically attractive. Not only was he short but he had an ugly hunch.

One day he visited the house of a merchant from Hamburg who had a beautiful daughter by the name Phromtha. Mendelson desperately fell in love with her but his appearance was repulsive and she could not even dare to look at him. No sooner he had to leave, Mendelson gathered all his inner strength and climbed the stairs to Phromtha's room. He was hoping that he would have the last chance to look at her divine beauty. But alas, Phromtha caused him great sadness for she could not raise her head to look at him.

Following several failed attempts to make a conversation, Mendelson looked down and shyly asked Phromtha: "Do you believe that matching is determined in heaven?"

"Yes, I do", Phromtha answered and her eyes were still fixed on the room's floor. "And you, do you believe that?", she asked Mendelson.

"Indeed. I believe so too", he answered. "You see, in heaven, when a male baby is born, God announces who would be his future wife. When I was born they showed me the woman whom I would marry, but God added that she would have a hunch!".

"Right then I cried: 'Oh my dear merciful God, a hunch is a terrible thing and for a woman, it's much worse. Please give the hunch to me to carry and leave her beautiful".

Mendelson became silent and Phromtha looked in his eyes for the first time. A distant memory stormed her spirit. She stretched her arm and took Mendelson's hand.

Later they got married.