Seeing...

How does the world look through a broken window? How well can you see?

Consider our perception as similar to seeing the word through a window. Our perception is a sort of filter of what we make real and important in the world. Everyone perceives a little differently.

If our perception is like a window, then how clear do I want my window to be? If I'm seeing the world through cracks in the glass, I'm seeing the world as cracked and broken. If the window is clean, I see things clearly.

So where do all these cracks and breaks come from? How to keep the glass clear?

First place I look when I notice the world looks broken or hazy is my judgments. As humans we developed a quick way to process information: good, bad, like, dislike, dangerous, safe, want, don't want. It simplifies and quicken the decision making process. And sometimes we mistake them for the truth. "She's mean!", "He's a jerk!", "They're bad people!", "I'm stupid!". Are they the truth? Or are they simply cracks in the glass?

What would happen if I simply listened to the judging part of me without seeing it as the truth? What if I thanked it for sharing and still went about my day? If I didn't attach myself to these thoughts, would they still have the same power?

Make a list of your top ten judgments. Then really look at them and next to each put a 'true' or 'false'. Consider that they are all false, just some dirt on your window. Keep whipping them clean.

It is the mark of an educated mind to be able to entertain a thought without accepting it.

-Aristotle

copyright Yvonne Falk 2009 ALL RIGHTS RESERVED