The good thing about the New Year is the ability to change perspectives.
I don’t know about you, but I have faulty perception. In my mind’s eye, I see myself as I want to be, not necessarily as I am. The Poet Robert Burns has a line which says: “O wad some Power the giftie gie us To see oursels as ithers see us!” (To a Louse) As a former English teacher, I have taught this poem many times, and have mused as to the power of its truthfulness.
We observe things clearly when they pertain to other people. Well, maybe not clearly, but with a certain amount of objectivity and perspective. On the other hand, when we are viewing ourselves, we look through our intentions, not our actions, and rather see through rose-colored glasses.
Such is the case with me, and maybe with you too.
Unfortunately, when someone close to us reveals what we truly are, it can be quite a shock. We are forced to turn off that make-believe recording, or take down that air-brushed photo in the cold light of the facts. I don’t know if it affects you the same way it did me, but looking at my limitations, (the fact that I cannot out-run a speeding bullet; I do not have super-human powers; and I would not make the cut on the runways of ‘Gay Paree,’) is heartbreaking. When did things change?
Which brings me to the point of these thoughts. Things have changed. Time marches on, and the second law of thermodynamics is still in force. I have a choice to make: To look a things objectively, make changes and move forward, or stay stuck in the ‘what might have been’ and continue to be frustrated and disappointed.
Until next time,
Polly
