IT'S ALL A MATTER OF PERSPECTIVE

When my son was younger, someone asked him what he wanted to be when he grew up. His response was: "I want a job like my mom's where I can sit back in my chair and put my feet on my desk."

Hmmm. A telling comment.

In fact, as I write this post, I am sitting back in my chair on the verandah, with my feet up on the brick sidewall. I guess this is my preferred method of sitting. The last week, I have been breaking in my new shoes (the ones where my toes are covered) and observing an emblem on the side of my shoe that looked like a V with an underline under it. I would casually ponder the meaning of the V with the underline and try to recall what brand of shoes they were.

Could the V stand for: "victory" - "vibrant" - "virtue" -- golly -- what could it be? I guess it wasn't pressing enough for me to spend much time pondering, or to actually get up and figure it out. Day in, day out, I would sip my coffee, meditate or write, and casually gaze at the V, without understanding.

Yesterday, it came to the forefront of my conscious -- "what the heck is the V?" So I sat up and took off my shoe to examine it.

Yepper, by changing perspective, it became clear.
By changing perspective, and turning the shoe, I could see that the V with the underline, was actually a K, and the shoe was a Keen.

A change in perspective is like, is the glass half full or half empty? Sometimes when we are in a squabble with someone -- it is important to step back and change perspective? Try to understand possible divergent views? What is the other person's view? What would a neutral bystander think? What views could you be overlooking?

It is like examining a crystal prism in the light -- as you turn it, your perspective of "reality" changes.
Same as my shoe -- a V with an underline or a K.
Same as an argument -- many facets to examine. Step back and change perspective.

My Keen's are now ready for my first day as an intern chaplain at Tampa General Hospital -- ready to cover lots of ground with my toes covered. And as I walk from person to person, family to family, it will not make a bit of difference whether my shoe had a V with an underline or a K. Not one bit.

Go forth today, and shift your perspective -- see if the world looks different.