I have two pictures for you today. We'll talk about them after you've had a moment to take them in. Please excuse the grainy quality. I took them with my phone.
The top one? Oo la la! The stunning beauty of such a sunset can easily inspire reverence and take our breath away. The second one? Meh. Nice scenery, but there's so much lacking. Not nearly as inspiring as the other scene.
But here's the secret - these pictures were taken of the same rice field, on the same day, at the same time.
One January evening, I was headed home from work, driving east with the sun glaring in my rear view mirror, completely unimpressed by the landscape around me. Driving this same route so often, I had seen this area through all the changes of the seasons and at varying times of day. Often the beauty of it brought me profound peace and contentment. Not that day. That day I remember thinking as I drove over the top of a levee which provided an expansive view, how thoroughly ordinary it all looked.
Half of a mile later, I turned south. Now the sun shone through my passenger window. I glanced to my right to decide whether to maneuver the visor to block the sun from my eyes and was hit with the amazing view in picture number one. A split second later three life lessons smacked me over the head, too. Well, really one life lesson with three applications. I knew I had to document this lesson, so I pulled to the side of the road, stepped out of my car, faced west and took the first picture, then faced northwest and snapped the second shot.
LESSON - PERSPECTIVE MAKES ALL THE DIFFERENCE
I knew this before but had never experienced such a dramatic visual reminder of it. I literally turned a corner and everything changed!
APPLICATION 1 - When I'm going through a time of my life, or even of my day, that feels dull, uninspiring, or even hard or scary, it's important to remember there's another way to view things that can make all the difference.
For example, if I can shift perspective, I can go from being terrified at the thought of leaving my secure job in an accounting office, to thrilled and inspired at the thought of starting my own business wherein I get to be of service to people in an area I'm passionate about. Even if I can't seem to make that shift, just knowing there's another way to see it can help. I can trust that my feelings aren't TRUTH; they're simply my experience of the situation. I may be experiencing terror, but there's another experience available. Okay, thanks. Knowing that can give me hope, or at least diminish my fear.
APPLICATION 2 - Just because someone else sees things differently, it doesn't mean they're wrong.
If someone had been standing next to me that evening at the rice field, we could have had two very different views. I could have been looking west and seeing the top image from above and they could have been looking northwest and seeing the second image. I would have been shocked at their lack of awe for what we were seeing, and they would likely think I was crazy for raving about it. We could have argued about who was right or whose opinion/experience was more valid when in reality we were simply having different experiences - even though we stood right next to each other.
APPLICATION 3 - There's power in sharing our perspective.
When we're the one seeing the first shot, so to speak, we can brighten the perspective of another by sharing ours. Without invalidating or belittling their view, we can share ours and give them hope, strength, comfort, and so forth. We can also be sensitive to the fact that although we may be soaking up the light, there are some around us who are struggling with the dark in one way or another.
When it's us seeing the second picture view, no one will ever know unless we share that with them. If we can be brave enough to open up, we will find we're not alone in our challenges. Even if the circumstances or our perspective don't change, our capability to deal with things can change when we know others understand.
I hope these two pictures can be of use to you in recalling these applications and any other Life Lessons you may find in them.
Remember - To see things in a whole new way, we may only need to turn a corner.