The Eyes from Which We See

Dear readers, what conversations have stuck with you through the years?

The one that stuck out to me was one I once had with an art student where they adamantly defended that beauty was not in the eye of the beholder. To them, some things were simply beautiful and others not. It wasn’t a matter of opinion to them but definition.

Suffice it to say that I disagreed with the student, and I still do. However, that isn’t the point. The fact is I find I remember this conversation fairly often, and it is when I do the same thing.

When I take an opinion and make it a definition.

“C.R. what does this have to do with your writing journey?”

Be patient, I’m getting there. I’ve seen this idea of making opinions into definitions a few times both in my writing journey and that of others.

More than once I’ve thought to myself “Aww man, this is going to be so cool!” Then, when I show it to someone else, they don’t really react at all. I can get weirdly offended and I know I’m not the only one.

I once read a quote from another writer who said something along the lines of “I’ll publish my third book when people finally learn to appreciate the hidden things in my first two.”

At the time, I didn’t understand how someone could be so arrogant. Now, I look in the mirror and I see it all too clearly. I don’t think it’s just writers though, don’t we all crave a little validation in our opinions?

Dear readers, as I journey on my Odd Man’s Odyssey I’ve seen many sights that have wowed me and I expect there will be many more. However, I have to remember that when I tell everyone about the things I’ve seen you may not share my excitement, and that’s okay.

There’s nothing wrong with wanting to share something amazing, but I should have the humility to accept that others might not see it as such. Even now, I am trying to work on that.

Let’s all try to appreciate that some sights are for us alone. We can recognize the honor of what we have the chance to see, without the pride of it.

We can see the hidden beauty the Architect of Dreams has built into our lives without thinking less of those who can’t see it too.

Until next time,
C.R. Ware