A Matter of Perspective

Every day I get a little e-mail called “Notes from the Universe.” I read it most days because it is short and sometimes insightful.

I really liked the note from February 25.

“Okay, Karin, metaphorically, let’s say you’re sitting in a little room, staring out the only window you’ve ever known, at a world that’s so incredibly beautiful you can hardly believe your good fortune. Every night you draw the blinds to sleep and every sunrise you rush to the window to gaze some more. Your life is idyllic.

“Then, one day, while gazing out the window at the wondrous, lush, enchanting paradise you’ve come to love, something incredible happens. Bulldozers appear, workers descend, and construction begins on a gigantic chicken statue that blocks your view.

“What would you do?

A. Learn to love the chicken statue since it’s “of God,” too.

B. Live off the memory of what used to be.

C. Lawyer up.

D. Move your chair to another little room.

Just one answer, please.

Love and beauty are everywhere,

The Universe”

I chose “A” for my answer just because the other answers didn’t seem very viable.

But it was the letter’s “P.S.” that got to me. . .

“P.S. Yes, Karin, at some level you allowed that statue its place… and you knew what you were doing.”

Wow!

Take that any way you choose, but I saw it as a wake-up call. I let that chicken statue happen. My inactivity allowed it to take center stage. My inability to move turned that big, ugly chicken statue into my focal point!

Yes, I tried to find beauty in it because it is “of God,” too, but I think I used that as an excuse for my laziness. I let all these “things”, these big, ugly chicken statues, become my focus. And, in a way, it became an idol.

Those “things” become idols when we put them in a higher place than God in our lives. It is so easy to do, too.

I put work first in a lot of situations. With three jobs, sometimes it is necessary. (I work here at the newspaper, as a personal care assistant and do some freelance work, as well as serving on the Clarissa City Council.)

My second big, ugly chicken statue (idol) is napping. I like to nap. I could nap for hours every day if I didn’t need to work so much!

It can be so easy to put so many things on our plates that they overflow (and not in a good way). We let that big, ugly chicken statue dictate what we see every day. We let our love or loathing of that chicken become our focus. No matter where we look or what we do, we always see that thing!

Let’s be active if we want that statue gone from our sight! I think I saw a hammer and a pick somewhere! Now I just have to use them.

For me, getting that idol (or those idols) out of my way and putting God first is a priority.

Do you have a big, ugly chicken statue in your life?