A Broader View

When I feel stuck in a situation, I try to remember to take a broader view.
What does that mean?

For me, it means remembering that there's more to the situation than how I perceive it, and what I think about it.

If there are other people involved in the situation, they have their own perception and thoughts about it. Although witnesses to/in an event may agree on the facts of what happened, each person saw it from a different vantage point, and even two people standing side by side may see something different.

Near Miss or Plenty of Time?

For example, a few months ago, I was chatting with a neighbor who was outside with her elderly dog. the distance of at least a block away, a truck roared quickly up the road. But at least a half block away, I saw him slow down dramatically. I assumed that he saw the dog in the road and slowed down.

I thought, that was nice of him. The dog had plenty of time to move to the side out of any danger. My friend waved down the driver as he came slowly by. I thought she would thank him for slowing down. I was quite surprised when my friend shouted at the driver for racing down the road and not stopping in time. After a short interchange, he drove off shaking his head, looking quite upset himself.

I thought about saying something to my friend, but she was still upset. So I listened to her, and realized that she saw something completely different than what I had seen. In her mind, the car had not slowed down much, and not very far from the dog. There was no point in arguing, because that is what she saw. Perhaps fear and protective instinct for her dog clouded her vision. Perhaps she was having a bad day and was not at ease before this happened. Perhaps I interpreted his speed based on my own fast reaction time.

We'll never know since there was no video camera capturing the scene to give us an instant replay.

Eye of the Beholder

So if something small like this can have such different interpretations, just think about how easy it must be to misinterpret larger events.

Dr Kenn Gordon, spiritual leader of Centers for Spiritual Living, explains it this way:
"A person sitting on the deck of a boat at sea can, with a mathematical certainty, see approximately three miles in every direction. That means we have the ability, if unobstructed, to see an area of around 9 square miles. If that same person climbed the mast of the same boat - let's say 25 feet higher - he would then be able to see eight miles or 64 square miles in total area, an area six times larger than what is seen just sitting on the deck. And so it goes with all horizons – physical, mental, and emotional. There is an exponential increase in view when one rises above the form of one's perception."

So when I think I have been slighted by someone, or someone grabs the parking spot I was hoping for, I have the choice to wonder what else might be true in the bigger picture.

How About You?

How do you remind yourself to think beyond your perceptions?