While at the gym this morning, I was watching one of those biographical shows on E! Entertainment about Christina Aguilera. They discussed the song that she wrote for her album Stripped called “Beautiful,” which was a popular hit single, won a Grammy award, and resonated with millions of people worldwide because of its universal message of hope and seeing the beauty inside oneself. I remember when I bought this album for Ed the year it came out – it was his Christmas gift in 2002. He had really enjoyed her first album and was avidly following her music (however, he was not terribly thrilled with her much more sexual and revealing image in the Stripped era).

I always knew when Ed liked a song a lot because he would hit “repeat” so that he could listen to it over and over. This is what he did with the song “Beautiful.” Sometimes, he’d even sing some of the lyrics quietly to himself while washing dishes or doing some other activity in the house. “Words can’t bring you down,” he’d sing.

Words can’t bring him down anymore. No one can bring my brother down ever again. It’s like this song was made for him. Ed is beautiful.

Beautiful

Every day is so wonderful
Then suddenly it’s hard to breathe
Now and then I get insecure
From all the pain, I’m so ashamed

I am beautiful no matter what they say
Words can’t bring me down
I am beautiful in every single way
Yes, words can’t bring me down, oh no
So don’t you bring me down today

To all your friends you’re delirious
So consumed in all your doom
Tryin’ hard to fill the emptiness, the piece is gone
Left the puzzle undone, ain’t that the way it is?

You are beautiful no matter what they say
Words can’t bring you down, oh no
You are beautiful in every single way
Yes, words can’t bring you down, oh no
So don’t you bring me down today

No matter what we do
(No matter what we do)
No matter what we say
(No matter what we say)
We’re the song inside a tune
Full of beautiful mistakes

And everywhere we go
(Everywhere we go)
The sun will always shine
(Sun will always shine)
But tomorrow we might wake on the other side

‘Cause we are beautiful no matter what they say
Yes, words won’t bring us down, oh no
We are beautiful in every single way
Yes, words can’t bring us down, oh no
So don’t you bring me down today

Don’t you bring me down today
Don’t you bring me down today