Random thought of the moment: There are 35 days, 2 hours and 5 minutes and counting left in this year…take that in for a moment and at the writing of this post, one of those days is virtually over.
Perspective is defined as “1. the art of drawing solid objects on a two-dimensional surface so as to give the right impression of their height, width, depth, and position in relation to each other when viewed from a particular point.”a perspective drawing” 2. a particular attitude toward or way of regarding something; a point of view…
The opening random thought of the moment will cause one of a myriad of thoughts and emotions – yet, how we choose to view the remaining 35 days will determine a lot.
This past year was fraught with challenges – losses and changes, requests, revelations, and the list could go on. I will not bore you, my five readers, with all of the details. Despite the challenges of this year, and part of me being more than ready to say goodbye to 2018, I cannot help wanting to look into my non existent crystal ball as I see 2019 approaching. Is it going to hold similar challenges and such as 2018? Is it going to be worse? AHHHHH!!! I want to know!! I want to be prepared for what lies ahead!!!
Record scratch moment! Life does not work that way, so let us take a look at what got me through the challenges of 2018. Good friends, support from others, but then also one thing almost more important and almost lost in the fray – perspective. I used to like to stand on top of the tallest objects I could find – simply for the perspective. Not only my point of view, but my overall view changed. I could see things from the top of the ladder that I could not standing on the floor and vice versa. I am an analytical/reflective sort and I am also very good at dissection – seriously I got A’s on my biology projects. With all of that, I have been trying to take a more objective look at things.
One of the greatest losses of this year was that of a dear friend who lost her very short battle with cancer. Here is where perspective comes into play. At times, part of me has wanted to wallow in this loss, and all of the other changes. Yet, what has kept me going further and stronger is point of view. My friend taught me things in her short time here I would not have had she and her husband not moved close to 700 miles away from their home in Kansas to Holland Michigan. While that seems obvious on one level, think about it for a moment. A decision about a job led them here, which led them to church, where our paths crossed for which I am eternally grateful. It was their courage to take that leap from the known, into the absolute unknown.
I will forever hold their, but mostly her example as a beacon on how to view this thing called life. Her lens was a focused one, focused mostly on her walk with the Lord, and how He not her was in charge of her times, days and ways. I know some who might read this and call that “hocus-pocus” to which I would say, they, like democrats, have the right to be wrong. I know this post is about perspective and while that last is partially a joke, one thing we should all be willing to do, is listen to those who oppose us. My friend and I did not agree on everything, but on those things which I found myself in opposition, I searched to know “why”. Why did I disagree, why did she hold her belief as she did. Why did it matter if we agreed or not. I focused on “what” too. What could be done to change one or the other’s of our perspectives, and did it matter?
Of late, I have been thinking about a question from the book “Start with Why” The author asks, “Why do you get up in the morning and why should we care?” My friend knew her “why”, she, in my opinion had her perspective in right view on many things.
The greatest change of the year, was a job shift – one where I went from talking on the phone all day to one where I barely speak at times. While both jobs held certain advantages, I felt the move from one to the other was the right decision and once again, my perspective has certainly shifted. This move and the way it came about revealed a certain truth, “I do not know what my future holds…!” What I do know is, I am looking forward to meeting the challenges of this new job and new year head on, and I hope y’all are too!
Single Slice of Cheese 