Creating Eyes that See

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“Above all, watch with glittering eyes the whole world around you because the greatest secrets are always hidden in the most unlikely places. Those who don’t believe in magic will never find it.” – Roald Dahl

This was originally published on 6/29/2022. Heads up – you may have already read this.

The other day, my 6-year-old daughter and her best friend asked me what an optical illusion is. I didn’t have the Merriam-Webster definition, “something that deceives the eye by appearing to be other than it is” at the tip of my tongue so we talked about examples of when you think you see something but your brain knows it can’t be real or vice versa. I showed them the classic example of the picture that is either the young lady with a necklace or an old lady with a prominent chin.

They were fascinated. But of course this is more than a trick for amusement, it’s one of the pillars of our life. As Albert Einstein said, “There are two ways to live your life. One is as though nothing is a miracle. The other is as if everything is a miracle.”

It reminds me of a person I knew who believed she had to check on everything that someone did for her otherwise she would be cheated. In one memorable instance, she had left her dog with someone who was staying at her house and became convinced the dog sitter wasn’t walking the dog as far as she claimed. So she devised a series of questions to trip up the dog sitter when she picked her up from the airport. What time does the sun rise this time of year? What is the favorite route that you walk with my dog? How many times does my dog poop on her morning walk?

She was convinced that these questions would help her find the TRUTH which was predetermined in her head as a story that the dog sitter didn’t get up as early and walk as far as she thought.

In the meantime, she completely missed that the dog was safe, happy and healthy and that the dog sitter was willing to drive her to/from the airport, that the dog sitter loved to watch movies and also worked from home so that the dog had almost constant companionship while she was gone.

Because none of that mattered if the dog sitter LIED about the morning walk. No gentle reminders from me or anyone else could change the perspective.

This person might be an anomaly in that she didn’t believe anyone, more or less, in her life. She believed that the only reliable person was herself and everything that she got, had, earned was only because of her personal efforts. There was no idea of grace, coincidence, faith, or even luck.

The rest of us are probably not as extreme but I think what Albert Einstein implies is that it’s a way of seeing. We can’t consistently believe that life is completely up to us in one area of our life (work, relationships, money) without it affecting all the others.

We have to believe in miracles to see them. Whatever we have faith in – be it God, the Universe, optimism, magic – will deliver goodness if we develop our ability to discern it. When we open ourselves up to the possibility that miracles happen in our life, it’s amazing to find how many we see.

As an example, my daughter was sad because her best friend, the one that was with her when asking about optical illusions, is moving at the end of the summer. Then as we worked through that reality, she discovered that a family with three kids that she already knows and likes from school happened to move in one block from us. They’d been up the street for 7 months and we hadn’t even realized until one day we saw them on the street. What a gift! The miracle didn’t save us from having to say good-bye to one friend, but instead it was the gift of new friends.

How do you interpret Albert Einstein’s quote? What miracles have you seen lately?

I’ve published a related post on Wise & Shine – Creatively Seeing

(featured photo from Pexels)

30 thoughts on “Creating Eyes that See”

  1. I’d begin with our existence. While not a miracle, the fact that each of us lives is an enormous longshot. Literally every one of our ancestors had to meet and mate at just the right moment to produce the person we see looking back at us in the mirror, and had to survive long enough to do it.

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  3. I loved both your quotes today and they give me something to think about. I love questions that come from young children, too. They ask penetrating questions that take some thought on our part. You reminded me of my five-year-old son asking me if infinite was a concept or a symbol.

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  4. Miracles? I don’t know if they qualify as miracles, but I’m mystified by the power of birth. Family friends recently gave birth to a healthy baby girl. When I looked at the baby, I was in a trance just looking at its fingers and toes. Yes, yea, I know my birds and the bees, but it just hit me how it all wrks out in the end. Kind of crazy I guess. Ha, ha.

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  6. I love that quote from Einstein. I can honestly say that seeing the sun rise on my flight over the Rocky Mountains on Friday was a miracle. Looking down at the mountains was a reminder of all of the beauty on our Earth, and why we need to work hard to protect it.

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  7. This is a wonderful repost for Thanksgiving weekend, Wynne. A reminder that how we view the world, with gratitude, makes such a difference in how experience it. I saw the young woman and had to contort my eyes to see the old woman. Not sure what that means!

    I can’t believe it’s been a long while since Miss O’s friend moved and a good reminder that when one door closes, another one opens, if we leave ourselves open to it.

    Wishing you four a wonderful Thanksgiving long weekend together!

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    1. Isn’t that funny about the illusion? Whatever way I see it first, I have a hard time switching it.

      Love you how say, “if we leave ourselves open to it.” That’s the trick isn’t it?

      Hope you all are getting ready for a restful weekend – you deserve it! ❤

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  8. I feel so sorry for that untrusting woman. What a difficult way to live.
    I’ve noticed the friend thing happen many times, where I lose a close friend for one reason or another (one moved to Australia!), but then God provides me with another. We really need people in our lives to thrive. I hope Miss O is still friends with the kids down the street.

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      1. It doesn’t happen right away, but I have noticed someone eventually comes in to fill the void. It’s a great blessing. Losing close friends, for whatever reason, are some of my saddest life experiences.

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  11. I know this is a serious post, and it’s a great topic, but you made me laugh for real when you wrote, I didn’t have the Merriam-Webster definition, “something that deceives the eye by appearing to be other than it is” at the tip of my tongue. Nicely done!

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  13. “When we open ourselves up to the possibility that miracles happen in our life, it’s amazing to find how many we see.” Sums up both quotations perfectly. Thank you for this lovely reminder, Wynne ❤️

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  15. Wonderful examples of why perspective is so important! The more we look for the miracles around us, the more we find. Beautifully done, Wynne!💞💞💞

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