I first learned about Brenna shortly after she was born. News came from my sister-in-law, a best friend to Brenna’s mom, Courtney Westlake, that the little girl — born just before Christmas — was fighting for her life due to a rare skin condition.
This sweet fighter named Brenna not only survived but eventually thrived. I first followed her story through Courtney’s blog and was always amazed and impressed by Courtney’s attitude. Even though taking care of Brenna’s skin — harlequin ichthyosis — and in turn her health presented so many trials and tribulations, Brenna and her family’s story is one of perseverance, hope, learning about special needs, strength, and a family’s love for their daughter, no matter what. (Affiliate links included).
Courtney’s book “A Different Beautiful,” isn’t just Brenna’s story, and it isn’t just about her skin (and how it fails to do the job it’s supposed to do). It’s the story of so many people who learned to find beauty in the every day and in the small moments — like the story of Brenna’s first pigtail. It’s about parenting and teaching our kids to be accepting and loving. It’s about no longer using the word “no” and learning how to say “yes,” even if that yes scares you. It’s about gratitude and appreciation, and how that gratitude is a choice.
In other words, in the crazy world we live in, where we’re so often divided by differences, this is a must read book. Because while the story is about beauty, it’s even more about acceptance and loving the differences among all people.
“We all go through seasons of life where we experience something different than what we were expecting. But so much of life is like Brenna’s pigtails,” Courtney writes. (For that exact story, you’ll just have to read the book).
She also writes, “If we try to chase ‘normal,’ we will be left running in circles. The best kind of normal for our lives is to allow differences to play an exciting and positive role in shaping us. Ultimately, our ability to conform does nothing for this world.”
Courtney writes a lot of God and finding strength through Him too. While I don’t consider myself religious, I still found strength, hope, and so much love with her words. “What our family has discovered after the birth of Brenna is that the best kind of beautiful — the truest beauty that God intentionally and lovingly created for us — is not only seen but also felt.”
But what perhaps struck me the most, especially as a mom, are the lessons I can teach my daughter, starting now, even when she’s a toddler. (Lessons, honestly, that many adults need to hear, too). “There is a whole new kind of beautiful to be discovered when we stop closing our eyes and our hearts to what is unfamiliar or unexpected,” Courtney writes. ““When it comes to telling things apart, our children need to be taught how to tell right from wrong, how to tell kind from unkind, how to tell what’s respectful from rude, and how to tell compassion from apathy.”
And to top it all off? Open mindedness is a choice. “We can decide, every day, how to meet the people around us. We can choose to compete, to criticize, to compare. Or we can choose to connect.”
All of these ideas are interwoven throughout the stories told in “A Different Beautiful” by Courtney Westlake, and the quotes alone do not do this book justice.
I’ve written and re-written this review over and over again, hoping to convey how important I think this book is. Moreover, I could go on and on with some of my favorite quotes from the book. (I highlighted my copy a ton). But I’ll stop here, and I’ll just say this: Read this book — and then re-read it. Share it. Spread Courtney’s message, one of love, hope, open-mindedness, and acceptance. Because at the end of the day? We could all use a little bit more Brenna in our lives.
