A few days ago we had a bout of freezing temperatures in our area--which for Charleston, SC was not only very unusual, it also caused extreme problems with traffic, closures and essentially killed a lot of the flowering plant life in the area because of the ice and light coating of snow that covered the ground.  Even our most hardy plants and trees were not immune to the effects of being weighted down with heavy ice and suffering under extreme cold, so much so that our usual evergreen landscapes started looking a great deal more bleak and brown than I'm used to during this time of year.

 So imagine my surprise when during my travels, I spotted bright, flowering plants in full glory. These hadn't been recently planted.  They weren't transplants.  Sure, a few of their leaves were obviously a little wilted and damaged--but their petals were vibrant as if they were saying they had taken the best shot the ice storm had to offer and had weathered it intact.

Their resilience provided me with another way of looking at life's trials and tests--and in the way in which we handle them.  We can either bend and break under the weight of the trials and hardships that may come our way, or we can take whatever life has to throw at us, weather the storm and like the flower--still showcase our resilience, strength and beauty--maybe a little beat up here and there, but still standing defiantly in the end.

"Looking" and "seeing" are dependent in large part upon the perspective that we use when we approach a situation--which then leads us to make decisions on the way we interpret the information that we encounter and subsequently what we do with it.

Perspective determines whether we learn from situations and what we learn.  

It determines our emotions and reactions.

It determines our worldview and the way in which we see ourselves and those around us.

When you begin to see the world not just through your eyes and the "lenses" of your emotions, experiences, wants, desires, thoughts and feelings--but expand your perspective and take on differing vantage points, "lenses" and adopt a broader vision to be able to not just "look" at the images that are in front of you, but to actually "see" them for what they truly are--you can then accept them for more than you thought they could be.

Your perspective does a great deal to change the course of your journey and can be changed with the single, simple act of changing your lenses from time to time in order to be open to envisioning your world as much more than you thought it could be.


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When we walk past things more often than not, we don't usually pay all that much attention to the details that comprise the essence of the object itself.  Sure, we see the generalities that make up what it is--size, shape, color, etc.--but do we really see it for what it is when we look at it?

Having a telephoto lense on a camera provides me with the luxury of being able to gain a closer view of items that I may not otherwise be able to achieve.  This not only provides an opportunity for me to appreciate the the beauty that is present within everyday things but it also enables me to notice details that I may have missed had I not taken the opportunity to look closer and harder at what was always there, right before me--hidden in the details.

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