In Others' Words: Vision

"It's not what you look at that matters, it's what you see." ~Henry David Thoreau, author

I am not a huge fan of optical illusions. When I look at them, my brain screams, "Something is not right with this picture!" Or else I'm thinking, "What is it the artist wants me to see that I'm not seeing?"

Rather than enjoying optical illusions, my mind is scrambling to make the picture right. Fix it. Make it work.

Maybe if I relaxed, allowed myself to go with it--whatever "it" is--I could relish unraveling optical illusions as much as, say, my husband does. Or all of my children do.
I limit my vision--my ability to see--when I get all caught up in the "rightness" or "wrongness" of what I'm seeing. 
Okay, I understand that there are some unbreakable truths. Grass is green. (Well, except when you don't water it.) And the sky is blue. (Except right before a thunderstorm.)
Hhhhm.
As a writer, I've learned that I'm more creative when I shrug off the "must-dos" and embrace the "why not try this" moments. When I look at a scene that's not working and--instead of focusing on everything I've done wrong, I see what's working and build on that.
Or consider relationships. 
Sometimes relationships feel like that photo looks. Off-kilter. Out of whack. Who took that photo anyway? But step back and think about it. Is that house really leaning? Or did someone have fun, tilt the camera, and take a silly photo?
Is that a wasted shot? Or a fun memory?
Is an off-kilter not salvageable--or merely in need of an adjustment?
I don't know, you tell me. What do you see?


In Others' Words: We hear about the value of vision--but do we stop and think about what guides our vision? Is it really what we look at--or all our experiences and circumstances--even what's happening right here and now--that determine what we see?