PERSPECTIVE
Guest Writer Gary Kimmel
“We don’t see things as they are, we see them as we are.”
— Anaïs Nin
AftbOptical 3 All for the Boys
Joanna’s Daily Something can certainly stimulate. A recent meditation (5 August 2020, “The Lens Through Which We See”) reminded me of an exercise I used when I mentored our youth group. It was primarily to teach them about perspective and how it influences how we see Creation and the people around them. I’d have them roll up a clean sheet of paper, look through it at a picture and say what they saw. Then, I’d have them write on the inside of the paper things like: parents, gender, age, school, friends, health, etc., then roll up the paper and look through it at the picture again. They saw the same picture, but now we could talk about how the things they put inside their paper tube could influence their perspective, and probably as important, that none of their perspectives was the same (even if they were siblings).
One of life’s lessons should be that we are all unique. Unfortunately, too often, we think our way is the best way, not just a way. Yes, we “think.” We let our egos get in the way. Would Creation be as vibrant and wonderful if everything followed the same path? Yet, as nations, we go to war to impose our system on others. As individuals, we marginalize and exclude others because their path is not the same as ours, never considering what has influenced their perspective.
Have fun this week. Take a piece of paper, put down what we have been given throughout our life and even before, then look at Creation. Then develop one for someone not like you, maybe a different race, gender, culture, or economic status, and look at Creation. Not everyone will have the same perspective, for everyone is unique, a special part of a beautiful rainbow.
Gary Kimmel
