It was comic relief. I’d watch friends inconspicuously make their way toward the framed print over the fire place and gently nudge it into place. Or at least what they thought was in place. The fireplace was lope-sided, crooked with the plumb line of the room. The art could either be aligned with the floor and ceiling (hence if you use a level) or the fireplace. Which ever you select, when seated on the sofa, the art work would look off kilter. At which point I’d mention the issue to the friend and we’d have a laugh.
I knew the big picture; it is what I lived with. It used to be a thing when people said look at the “big picture. Was this replaced with look at it “(w)holistically?” At a recent x-ray, the technician placed me, took the X-ray, mumbled something and reset me. She did this 3 times. She then brought another technician into the room. They repeated the process 2 times. At this point I realized, they were expecting a straight spine. I have scoliosis.
I know the bigger picture and that is what I live with. For decades, yoga teachers start to poke and prod me into alignment. I have scoliosis. Typically, the only times someone notices is when I’m really out of alignment and I walk with a more pronounced limp. When I took pictures for this, I realized how hidden my scoliosis is. The curve angle is more than it appears and pushes inward which reduces my lung capacity. However, without awareness of this, it appears my clothes are crooked and I need to sit up straighter, because, the curve isn’t visible.
When I relate the experience, the common response is, well they (the tech) should know, Well, not really. The percentage scoliosis in the US is only about 2-3%. There is a perception of reality and reality. The new vendor for the restaurant in my building has no vegetarian options. There are vegetable dishes, but nothing with protein such as beans, lentils or a meat substitute. The common response is, you should say something to them. I smile, shake my head and respond, the US population is about 4% vegetarian, obviously, I’m not the target diner for the menu and I have lived long enough not to expect a change.
The ability to most check facts and numbers is typically at arm’s reach with our phones. Google, you’ll get a couple of sources and you can read and compare and come up with numbers somewhere within a reasonable range. Anywhere from the cost of mani pedis, hair cuts, HOA dues, gym memberships. Chatgpt can even compare cost and break the features down into a table which I did this week for healthcare plans.
A few weeks ago, I wrote that I’d installed an app on my phone to track time. The results was, I spent a lot more time watching YouTube under the guise of multi tasking. The big picture, I cut out “YouTube Multitasking” and netted an extra 10 – 12 hours a week to do the things I’d neglected like email, music practice, etc. This week, consider, do you operate on reality or your perception of reality? Maybe more important, when you find out what you thought is not true, do you shift?
Balancing on Unstable Surfaces 