Labels...

In our language we seem to have labels and names for everything. We grow up learning the label for tree, for sky, for cat, for house. And before we had a name for it, what was it to us? What was the thing we call a stick?

I've watched young children explore their environment. I see them pick things up and look at them in a fascinated way. It may only be a leaf or small rock, but to them it seems to be the most wonderful thing they've ever seen.

When we get older, there seems to be less interest in the common items around them. The world becomes more defined. There are labels for all these things. No one else seems to think they are all that interesting, so why should we? It seems that's when things become boring.

And yet, the magic is still potentially there. Just because we have a name for something, does that mean we really know what it is? There are trees, and then there are the wonderful, dynamic, growing, swaying, multifaceted things we call trees. The function, purpose and energy of this entity is so much more than it's name.

It is very useful to be able to talk about things in our environment. To quickly communicate. And sometimes, we seem to confuse the label for what something truly is, which in my experience, is unknowable.

Next time you look at a tree or a rock or even a stick, imagine seeing it for the first time. No label, no judgment. Just experience it. Notice every little thing about it. The magic starts to come back, the wonder and curiosity.

copyright Yvonne Falk 2010 ALL RIGHTS RESERVED