I am fascinated by what is beautiful, strong, healthy, what is

Hear the voice of Leni Riefenstahl, whose life was marked by brilliance and controversy, yet who confessed a simple truth that transcends her own story: “I am fascinated by what is beautiful, strong, healthy, what is living. I seek harmony.” In these words lies a longing older than empires—the human desire to behold life at its highest, to touch what is radiant and enduring, and to weave it into a vision of balance. For beauty, strength, vitality, and harmony are not fleeting ornaments; they are the very threads from which the fabric of existence is woven.

To be drawn toward the beautiful is to align oneself with creation itself. For the stars do not shine in chaos, nor does the flower bloom without pattern. The Greeks saw beauty as an echo of the divine order; Plato taught that the soul ascends through beauty toward truth itself. What Riefenstahl names is not vanity, but reverence for form, for proportion, for that which lifts the heart beyond despair. In honoring the beautiful, we are reminded that the world is not only broken but also filled with wonder.

To revere the strong and the healthy is to honor resilience—the capacity of life to endure against time’s relentless hand. Yet true strength is not mere domination; it is the quiet power of endurance, the courage of the oak that stands through storms, the vitality of the river that carves valleys over centuries. When she speaks of these things, she echoes the ancient admiration for the heroic spirit—the body trained, the mind disciplined, the soul unwavering. For in the presence of such strength, we are reminded of what we, too, may become.

But her words reach further: she is fascinated by what is living. This is the heart of the matter. To seek life in its fullness is to embrace growth, transformation, and the pulse of creation itself. Life is not static; it blossoms, it decays, it rises again. To love the living is to honor the sacred dance of existence, to see value not in stillness alone, but in motion, struggle, and becoming. In this sense, her fascination is not only aesthetic but spiritual—an alignment with the eternal current that flows through all things.

And then comes the culmination: “I seek harmony.” Harmony is the union of opposites, the balance of light and shadow, the blending of voices into one song. To seek harmony is to long for wholeness in a fragmented world. This pursuit is older than philosophy: it is the yearning of the shepherd for peace, the artist for unity in their work, the statesman for concord among the people. Without harmony, strength becomes cruelty, beauty becomes vanity, life becomes chaos. But with harmony, each element finds its rightful place, and together they form a greater whole.

History itself testifies to this longing. Consider Leonardo da Vinci, who sought the beautiful, the strong, the living, and above all harmony. His art was not only painting but anatomy, architecture, invention—an endless pursuit to bind all knowledge into one unified vision. Through this, he achieved a legacy that endures beyond centuries. His life reveals that the search for harmony is not mere sentiment, but the path to immortality of influence.

The lesson for us is clear: direct your eyes toward what uplifts, strengthens, and gives life. Do not dwell endlessly on decay, weakness, or despair, for though these are real, they are not the whole truth. Instead, nurture the beautiful in your surroundings, strengthen your body and spirit, honor the vitality of life, and seek always to create harmony within yourself and with others. In this, you will not only enrich your own days but contribute to the song of humanity.

Practical steps flow from this wisdom. Surround yourself with art, nature, and voices that remind you of beauty. Cultivate health and resilience in body and mind, for in your own strength you may better serve others. Engage with life—grow, learn, and cherish what breathes. And wherever conflict arises, choose to be a seeker of harmony, the one who bridges, who balances, who unites. For in so doing, you embody the eternal fascination with what is beautiful, strong, healthy, living—and you help weave the world into a more harmonious whole.