When I was in college, Starbucks had the best cups. "The Way I See It" cups. Printed on the side of every venti extra shot no foam latte was a glimpse into another's world. A few words of a stranger's perspective gifted to me.
I was captivated by these opportunities of sharing. For hours my friend, and literary magazine partner in crime Will and I would discuss and dissect the viewpoints of our respective americanos and lattes.
There were some cups I especially loved and others I didn't care for. Some were shocking, others reflective; in their own way, each way of seeing it evoked emotion that bow tied itself to the cup of coffee and the remainder of my day.
A perspective I appreciated and resonated with connected me to another someone somewhere out there in the world. A kindred spirit I may one day meet and exclaim, "I see it the exact same way!" But an opinion I disagreed with made for bitter sips and judgmental disbelief that someone could possibly see something in such a completely wrong way.
It was a gamble those "The Way I See It" cups… putting the fate of my coffee and the mood of my day in the hands of another's perspective.
I'd like to tell you I've grown tremendously since college. I'd like to proclaim my maturity and diplomacy in making decisions. I'd like to humbly admit to hosting and mediating conversations where different viewpoints are shared and people of all walks of life leave the round table feeling heard, accepted, and loved. Wave my acceptance flag high and sing kumbaya around a campfire with each of you.
Instead I find myself entering month five of the race. Wishing I'd invested in forehead Botox- maybe then shock wouldn't be so visible on my face when I hear one of my six female teammates "seeing things."
The way I see it…perspective is one of the most beautiful and exhausting aspects of this thing called life.
Perhaps perspective is formed in a single instance but expressed and impacts a thousand others. A defining stance taken on all issues ever.
Or possibly, perspective is gathered along the way, so slowly you don't even recognize you've been carrying it around seeing through it for all these years.
Ironically named as we are most often blind to our own. Until we see someone else seeing something-
The beautiful exhaustion.
Vulnerably putting your seeing on the side of a cup- out there for others.
And responding to the cup you've just been handed- with wisdom and love.
[repeat]
In my flesh- I don't always express my perspective tenderly, or respond to others' with shock absent from my face. Sometimes perspectives exhaust me. I am a month five world racer and sometimes I don't appreciate feedback as quickly as others.
It is twelve hours into the year 2014. The potential for the year feels tangible. A fresh start-
As I begin this year, reflecting on where I've been and anticipating all the adventure ahead, my prayer is for a Heavenly perspective. My heart longs to reflect that of Christ's gentleness. To see things His way. So let us take off our glasses, may they be rose colored or smudged with cynicism. Let us pray for new eyes this new year.
Father, I pray for the wisdom to see more things the way you see them.
