The benefits of finding a "quiet corner"........stillness within.

Some subjects can be more difficult to write about than others and for a number of different reasons.

However, I have noticed that "cartoon" figures sometimes seem to be able to convey quite clearly and often inoffensively, ideas/thoughts/notions/pondering's with one single image what may otherwise take a whole lot of words. So, I invented this "Teddy" figure to speak for us. I begin with a pencil drawing, then sometimes add some colour with water colours or ink, and usually finish the image by editing it in Photoshop where I often add a text to go with the image. 

For me, a poem consists of compact and precise language, where a few stanzas can potentially open us up to a whole new world of thinking.

Song lyrics, when in the hands of a master may be able to tell us with a few verses and a chorus a whole life story...as for example in "Eleanor Rigby", a song by the Beatles.

A cartoon, often a simple drawing(image) intended for caricature, humour, and satire, yet with one single image, a thousand words may well up from within us.

In the case of the above image, Teddy has placed himself in a quiet corner.

Sometimes, the world is just too loud

for a Teddy who feels uncomfy in a crowd.

Sometimes, there's just too much information,

to absorb for a Teddy of a gentle persuasion.

Sometimes, there's just too many expectations,

to live up to for a Teddy plagued by hesitations.

Sometimes, there's just too much going on,

for a Teddy uncertain and prone to apprehension.

yet

There are also times when the world is shining,

for a Teddy who finds life and living exciting.

And there are times when finding more information

is a comfort for a Teddy seeking explanations.

There are many a times when others expectations,

motivates a Teddy to realize sought for aspirations.

Other times when it seems much is going on

a Teddy may find stillness in a simple song.

For some of us, a quiet corner may not be a corner, it may be watching a sunrise, a sunset, watching the ocean, sitting quietly under a luscious tree, watching children at play, listening to soothing music, meditating, ...... the list goes on. When we enter a place of stillness (a quiet corner) it becomes possible to hear our "inner voices" no matter how loud the world is.

"The inner is foundation of the outer

The still is master of the restless.

The sage travels all day yet never leaves

his inner treasure." (Lao Tzu)

What is a friend?...

Most of us if asked what we value in life would probably rank friends as very valuable.

Some suggest that friends play an important role when it comes to us experiencing a sense of "happiness".

It may be easy to assume that the word "friend" need no definition, but in my experience, it does.

Broadly speaking, most of us would probably define a friend as someone with whom we share a bond of mutual affection and esteem, commonly someone outside of our family relations (although we may view a family member as a friend) and usually void of a sexual component.

In 2009, the New Oxford Dictionary's word for the year was "unfriend", a word that without Facebook probably would not exist.  "Unfriend", as in: to remove someone as a "friend" from a social networking site. (as Facebook)

 How does one define the term "Facebook friend"? Is a friend on Facebook a "real" friend?

Hmmm.......tricky to answer. A friend on Facebook may be someone we may never have met, never spoken to, someone we admire but have no deeper access to (celeb), etc. or it may be someone we  are close to and see and talk to face to face regularly.

I have a sneaky suspicion that now when there is such a thing as a "Facebook friend", our definitions and expectations of what a friend is, may have changed somewhat.

Do we value Facebook (or other social network sites) friends as much and or the same way that we value the friends we "hang out" with?

Often there are words attached to the word friend such as: real, true, good, loyal, trustworthy, faithful, dependable, and so on. These words are important when we attach them to the word friend, because in my view, they often carry with them our own expectations of  how a friend should or should not behave.

"A friend is someone who:...is always there for you, is honest, supports you, encourages you, is loyal, is faithful, is dependable, loves you, has your back, understands you....(insert here your own definition)....etc.etc.

If someone we call a "close" or "trusted" friend behaves in a way that doesn't fit with our expectations of how such a friend should behave, we often feel hurt, disappointed and or betrayed. (When we establish a friendship with someone, more often than not we assume that the person we are befriending has the same views on what being a friend means.)

A common expectation many of us have of a friend is disclosure, as in, a friend doesn't keep secrets from us. This can be a problematic expectation because many of us have different interpretations on what we deem a "secret". Someone's "secret" may be that he or she is plagued with panic attacks, insecurities, obsessive thoughts, social anxieties, etc. that he or she may not be ready or strong enough to disclose to anyone. Many of us hold back in telling our friends about some things and aspects of ourselves because we are not sure how they will respond. Sometimes we may even find it easier to tell a total stranger about something that is important to us than a close friend.

Working behind the bar in a Jazz club in Stockholm I was often told secrets: "Wow, I have never told anyone about this, I don't know why I am telling you" was a common comment. Perhaps it is easier to tell a total stranger something because chances are, that such a person has no preconceived opinions and is therefore hopefully less likely to be judgmental? 

Although we often value our close friends input and opinions, perhaps at times we also fear them.

(as in: "What are you doing, that's not you, .....how could you do something so stupid, ....what were you thinking!" etc.etc. )

I believe there are different levels of friendships:

Acquaintances: people we mostly know by name and have exchanged a few words with

Colleagues/work mates: people we see mostly in a particular environment and seldom make plans with outside of that environment

Group friends: people we mostly do things with as a group

Friends: people with which we have established a connection and history but see sporadically

Close friends:  people with which we have established an emotional connection and history, we see them regularly, we trust them and value their opinions, we respect and support them, we care deeply about all aspects of them and their lives

Best friend: a person with whom we have an emotional bond and history, shared passions, mutual respect and love, an un-wavering openness to stand by him or her when its needed, and a willingness to alter one's own expectations for the benefit of the friendship

Most of us have ideas, opinions and expectations on what a friend is, but I wonder how often we ask ourselves what kind of friend we are. Do we ourselves fulfill the expectations we have of others?

When a friend comes to us with a problem, do we tell them what they should do or do we ask them what they need? If a friend tells us they are feeling lonely, do we tell them to be more positive or do we ask them if they want some company?

If a friend tells us they are feeling down, do we tell them to look at the bright side or do we ask them why they are feeling down?

If a friend tells us that their partner has left them, do we tell them that there is plenty more fish in the sea, or do we ask them if they want to talk about it?

"What must I do to be a good friend grand-father?" asked the boy.

"You must learn to listen" answered the grand-father.

"Friendship is the only cure for hatred, the only guarantee for peace." (Guatama Buddha) 

Letting go......easier said than done

The mother walks into the empty bedroom. 

All that is left are marks on the walls where her daughter's posters used to hang.

As she holds back her tears, she can't help but wonder where all the years went.

Children leave. They leave to form their own lives, and a parent's job is to let them go.

Letting go....often easier said than done.

Most of us have probably experienced being told to "just let go", or encouraged others to do so, but unfortunately, "letting go" doesn't come with instructions on how to do so. 

For a parent, letting go of one's child in order for him/her to become an autonomous being, in my experience, can be a rather difficult process and the reason I view it as a process rather than an event, is that "letting go" seem to involve going through different stages.

Of course, "letting go" is not just something only a parent has to go through....if we were to number on a list the times in our lives when felt we needed to "let go" of someone or something, it would probably become a very, very, long list. Letting go brings change, and change as far as we know at this stage, is inevitable, and always brings with it any number of adjustments.

The more emotionally attached we are to someone or something, the harder the adjustment to change may seem. When I was told by a doctor that I had to stop playing tenor sax because I had developed an allergy to the reed in the saxophone mouthpiece, I was devastated. I loved playing the sax, and to be told that I had to "let go" of doing so felt like I had to let go of my best friend. I began my letting go-process by bargaining: the "what-if's", ..what if I could find a reed that wasn't made of bamboo? what if I rinsed my mouth after each session on the sax?what if another doctor would tell me something different?

Eventually, with all my glands swollen, a continuously sore throat, lips swollen, infected, and bleeding, I realized that it was time to move on to the next stage of letting go: acceptance. The prognosis was that my allergy could not be cured, so I sold my saxophone (very reluctantly) and proceeded to the final step of my process of letting go: moving on (adjusting) and finding another "friend".
Often the word "just" proceeds letting go; "You just got to let go". Just? In my experience, letting go is seldom something one "just" does. Neither do I believe that "moving on" is something one just does. Letting go and moving on is not an easy thing to do, on the contrary, it can be very difficult and painful, because often it involves letting go of expectations and "but what if''s" of varying kinds.
As I view it, commonly letting go begins with a desire and willingness to do so, preempted by no longer wanting to fight against change, rather, seeing possibilities that change may bring with it.
"I don't know what will happen if I quit this job, but I don't want to stay in it any longer, I don't know how I will cope with breaking up with my partner, but I don't want to stay in this relationship any longer, I don't know if seeing a counselor will help me, but I don't want to feel this way any longer, all I know is that I need to change my situation and find something better, etc.etc.".
(What that "better" may be is up to the individual seeking the change.)
Some suggest that pain (emotional and or physical) can be a great motivator for embracing change and moving on/letting go.
Most of us probably don't like going to the dentist, but usually tooth ache brings us to one in the end, many of us don't like going to the doctor, but a wound that won't heal or a strange looking spot on the skin usually brings us to see one, some of us may view psychologists and counselors as "quacks", but night-sweats, re-occurring nightmares, flashbacks, compulsive and anxious thoughts, and or crippling fears of different kinds often tend to motivate us to seek assistance from them.
It can be difficult to let go of toxic relationships even though we know they harm us, it can be difficult to let go of our adult children even though we know that for their benefit we need to do so, it can be difficult to let go of our belief system(s) although it(they) no longer holds true for us, and so on, because it can be difficult to get past the bargaining stage: if he/she just changed, if they just.... if , if, if.
Once we have concluded that bargaining (if only x would...) is not "working" for us or meeting our desired expectations, I believe we are at the beginning point of the letting go process.
Next step is to accept "what is" rather than how we wish things to be, how things could be, or how things once were. (As in: The marriage/relationship is over, my child is leaving home, I will age, I am no longer as fit as I was when I was 25 years old, my parents will die, I have a chronic illness, etc.etc)
After we have stopped bargaining, and have accepted the things we consider to be "what is", I believe we can proceed to the last step (of this process but the beginning of something else); letting go and moving on.
 If in order to let go you must forgive yourself and or others,...forgive.
Some things and some people belong in our past, but not in our present or to our future. Today can not begin unless we let go of yesterday. Loosen your grip on what was or what could have been, instead keep your hands open so possibilities may fill them.

"Abundance is a process of letting go, ....that which is empty can receive."
(Brian H. McGill)

Are we living in an "Age of Incredulity? (Mistrust)

I was just a small child when I saw my first Disney movie, "Fantasia", but I still remember the sense of joy and wonder it invoked in me.   More than anything else, the characters that Walt Disney created: Mickey, Goofy, Donald Duck, Snow white and the Seven dwarfs, etc.etc. offered unadulterated, innocent fun. Animation, for many perhaps viewed as "kid's stuff", has come far since then, often venturing into the opposite of "innocent" fun, and some of it could definitely not be classified as  "kid's stuff".  

What do I mean with "the Age of Incredulity"?

Incredulity has many definitions, let me suggest a few: skepticism, distrust, denial, suspicion, disbelief, and so on...so the age of incredulity could also be "the age of mistrust and suspicion".

Watching a program on the TV in which a panel of professional people representing different areas of "expertise" were discussing how we, aka "the people", are affected by mass-media and the issue of free speech, one of the panelists had this to say: "We are all entitled to our own opinions, but not to our own facts".

Facts, in my view, is really important for a reasonable and logical exchange of ideas to take place, so what happens when facts no longer hold sway (influence)? What happens to the foundation of a society and its people when a fact can become unreliable by just putting the word "alternative" in front of it, and news dismissed out of hand by just putting the word "fake" in front of it?

Incredulity.

If we can't trust facts, what happens to science? Medicine? Technology? The judicial system? The educational system?.... to mention a few areas. (Fact: knowledge and or information based on actual occurrences.)

In order for a society to function and support its members, necessitates a level of congruence and congruence is achieved when a society has a number of agreed upon "do's and dont's" which the members of that society adhere to. In a democracy, generally speaking a free press is often considered a corner stone providing the populace (us) with pertinent, honest and authentic information on what is going on in our own society as well as in others. "The only freedom for us all is in a free press." (Thomas Jefferson, american president) Commonly what is meant with "freedom of the press" is the right to circulate opinions & information in print and or through the use of electronic media, without censorship by a government/governmental body. 

Can facts be "alternative"? I guess that depends on how we define facts. Can News be "fake"? I guess that depends on how we define News....

Words are problematic; because they are often ambiguous and can be interpreted and defined differently by different people. Words are important; they make communication with others easier, and in my view we use them to define the world we live in.  Words can be powerful; they can comfort, tell stories, support, be constructive or destructive, they can heal, encourage, belittle, shame, insult, etc. etc. 

This ambiguity can be rather disconcerting for some of us, especially if we seek certainty in an ever more uncertain world. If news can be fake, how do we identify authentic news? If facts can be alternative, how do we identify correct/true facts?

For some of us, gut instincts and feelings may play an important role in deciding which is what, but, are gut instincts and feelings really to be trusted?

It may feel safe to trust our gut, but the problem with that is that gut instinct is mostly based on previous experiences and knowledge, and is therefore limited by our own perceptions.  Our perceptions, although they may be experienced by us as "truth" are often subjected to subconscious bias and erroneous thinking, and gut instinct, although at times quite helpful, in my view can also at times be an obstacle that prevents us from gaining deeper insight and understanding.

"We believe what we want to believe", "we see what we want to see", "we don't see the world as it is, we see it as we are", "we don't see the world as it is, but as we believe it to be"...quotes by wise folks, but not particularly helpful for those of us seeking certainty.

Mankind has lived through a number of different "Ages": The Dark Ages, The Age of Enlightenment and Reason, the Industrial Age, the Age of Technology and Information, each age bringing with it new insights and knowledge but.... have we now come full circle? Are we now guided by instincts, superstition and feelings like in the Dark Ages?

Have now entered the Age of Incredulity/Mistrust?

If facts can be alternative, news fake, politicians self-serving rather than serving their society, the medical profession bought by big Pharma companies rather than being motivated by patient care, governments owned by Mega rich individuals with hidden agendas rather than run by people wanting to serve its constituents, "Churches" driven by the pursuit of money rather than faith, etc.etc. what is left for us to put our trust into?

I wish I knew the answer, but all I have is this:

Change. We can trust in change.

Ages come and ages go.

In spite of mistrust around us, we still get

to chose to find something to put our trust and support into.

"If we consider carefully the options put before us

So much wisdom, so much love, so much waiting for us,

and if we look ahead, there's the sun and the seasons,

another day, another age of reason."

(Lyrics to the song "Age of Reason" by Pigott, Johanna Paton/Hunter, Todd Stuart)

Now is when life happens.

Time.

Such a peculiar something it is. Some think of time as a fundamental structure of the universe, unaffected by the goings on of mankind, a kind of dimension in which events takes place in sequence.

Others view time as an intellectual human construct, time is neither an event or a something, and is therefore not measurable. (Well, not by humans anyways) 

Although there may be many different ways to define what time is exactly, for most of us, time plays a huge part in how we live and organise our lives.

 Our experience of time often falls into one of three different terms: the past, the present, and the future. Often we slip and slide through the terms, occasionally even finding it hard to differentiate between the terms. Memories belong in the past, imagination in the future, and physical pain (for instance) belong in the present.

However, a painful memory from the past can trigger the imagination into envisaging further pain in the future, making the present a mixture of all three tenses.

Physically engaging in "time travel" at this point in time is not possible, but what about time travelling in the mind?

Could not a memory perhaps be viewed as travelling back in time? Could not visualization perhaps be viewed as time travelling into the future?  (There are many books on that particular kind of time travelling: "If you can visualize it, you can make it real.")

Old as I am, I have started to consider if perhaps not many of us find the past and/or the future easier to deal with than the present.

The thing with "now" as I see it, is that to truly be present in it, requires an incredible amount of attention, discipline and single-mindedness. It is so easy to slip into thinking ahead or thinking back without even being aware of doing so.

Thich Nhat Hanh, a Vietnamese Buddhist monk, challenges the reader in his book "Peace in every Breath" to focus all his/her attention on really tasting every bite of food when eating something, to really taste every sip of water, tea, etc. when drinking as a way of staying in the present. "Why not I thought, let's try it." Wow. Such a simple task, yet so incredibly revealing at the same time. This simple task made me realise just how often the mind wanders all over the place, so over and over I had to bring my attention back to the taste. This simple exercise lead me to ponder how I could apply it to other areas of my life, as in "wherever you are, be there". 

In many cultures, goal-setting is considered a valuable tool for personal achievement, and I get that, but perhaps it can also be an "obstacle", making it more difficult to live in and experience the present?

We walk and run on treadmills with headphones plugged in, we walk outdoors with headphones plugged in (guilty as charged), we ride exercise bikes with headphones plugged in, we ride buses, trains, planes, bikes, with headphones plugged in, we can even swim laps in a pool with water-tight headphones plugged in, and so on. We have goals to attain, so we focus on attaining our goals rather than on where we are, who or what is next to us, or what kind of nature/landscape/city-scape we are in.... having headphones on we can "isolate" ourselves from outer distractions and stay firmly focused on our goals.  

For many of us, the way we live our lives is pretty much organised/sorted/determined by "units of time": how many units of work we do in a day, how many units of sleep we need each day, how many units of chores we have to do in a day, how many units of exercise we have/need to do in a day, how many units we allow ourselves for eating each day, how many units we allow for inter action with friends and family each day, ....and so on. 

Most of my life I have lived a very goal-orientated, time-constricted and organised life, absolutely taking "time" for granted, until one day when I came to realise that I was not enjoying life. When asked what I did for "fun", I found myself stumped? Fun? I was perplexed. After weeks of pondering the question I concluded that I had no idea...so now I had a new goal: to find out what I considered as "fun".  I quickly came up with stuff that I used to consider to be "fun", but now no longer seemed fun at all. I decided that I needed to re-define the term "fun", so fun became: "enjoyable, no strings attached".

So, playing air-hockey was "fun" I discovered, so was jumping around the house to loud music when no-one was around, so was inventing different recipes (food), so was painting large paintings, so was browsing second hand book stores...etc. Interestingly, when I am engaged in doing these things, time no longer exists, all there is, is the pure experience of being in the moment. (Qualia = pure experience)

Time flies. Time drags. There's not enough time. There's too little time. There's too much time. Time heals all wounds. Time is a human construct. Time is "real". Time is a mindset. Time is measured in seconds, minutes, hours, weeks, months, years, etc. Time is either the past, the present, or the future. Time can be wasted, treasured, squandered, experienced.

Much like life: it can be wasted, treasured, squandered, and or experienced.

And like time, how much of it each of us are allotted is not for us to take for granted, neither do I believe that life is something for us to take for granted either.

Each new moment presents for us an opportunity to experience something if we but take the time to notice it.

"It's being here now that is important. There's no past and there's no future. Time is a very misleading thing. All there ever is, is now. We gain experience from the past, but we can't relive it; and we can hope for the future, but we don't know if there is one." (George Harrison) 

Look up. Look out. Look in. 

Touch. Taste. Smell.

And listen.

Are we living in an age of fear and suspicion? What happened to innocent until proven guilty?

Death.

Always the smell of death.

He pulls his son close to his chest as if to say to death: "Stay away! This is my son and you're not taking him as well!"

The ship's deck is packed with people. All afraid, all with the smell of death invading their senses, all with hearts and minds fragmented, tormented, and barely held together.

Brokenness, .....the cost of  having faced death close-up, too many times.

The wind is relentless, the chattering and squawking sound of the seagulls insistent, and the black, thick, suffocating, black smoke from the overworked ship engine... over powering.

Emil coughs, a dry, bone-chilling hacking cough.

Abraham bends down and puts his ear to Emil's chest and anxiously listens. 

It doesn't sound good. Abraham has been worried about Emil's cough for months, but ever since they boarded the clapped-out tub of a "ship", Emil's cough has steadily been getting worse.

"But," Abraham says to himself, "what choice did I have?"

Abraham and Emil are alone now.. During the last bombing attack of their little town, his wife, his two little girls, his mother and father, and his beloved dog "Razzo" had all been killed. The only reason that Abraham and Emil are still alive is that at the time of the bombing, they had both been at the medical center in another town waiting to see a doctor. By the time they arrived home everything, and all their loved ones, were gone. 

"Dad, when are we going to get there" Emil suddenly asks.

The sound of Emil's voice brings Abraham back to the present.

"Not too long, son, not too long now" Abraham answers.

Abraham pulls his son closer, gives the boy a tentative kiss on top of his head then whispers into his son's ear: "Shhhh, be still now son, shhh...."

Emil, safely nestled beneath his father's strong arms, is worried about his dad. He knows that his dad is trying to make everything seem okay, but Emil also knows that the ship they are on is not safe, the crew operating it is not safe, and the little bit of food they are given sporadically, for sure is not safe. Last time the ship's crew gave them something to eat, he and his father had been sick for days after.

Just thinking about it makes Emil feel queasy. Emil hates war. Ever since the stupid war begun, Emil has been scared. Scared of the loud noises, scared of the silences, scared that his family would be killed, scared that he would be killed, scared of the fires in the night, and scared of the morning light illuminating all the brokenness: the broken towns, the broken buildings, the broken homes, the broken people, the broken hearts, and the broken hopes.

Ever since the time when all that was left of their family was him and his father, Emil has watched the light of hope in his father's eyes slowly dissipate and almost disappear.

"I must be strong, I have to be strong for dad" Emil says to himself and then continues "he needs me".

Emil takes a deep breath, and although just eight years old, he knows a lot more about life and suffering than such a young child is supposed to know.

Suddenly: Look! Look over there! There are people coming to welcome us! We are safe!".

Three words.

Three words that brings hope.

OR?????

Who are the people coming to "welcome" them?

Picture it.

Who would you like the "welcomers" to be if it was you on that ship?

Border patrol? Police?

Or: people from some government arm who scoops you up and transport you away to some kind of internment camp?

or: handcuffs you, separates you from the rest of your family and then drive you off to an undisclosed destination?

or: have your children taken away from you to "God knows where" under the heading of "for their own good"? 

It baffles me that people escaping wars and other catastrophes seeking refuge in another country are not treated as "innocent until proven guilty".  To put someone behind bars requires proof of an act of criminality, as in, they are supposed to be presumed to be innocent until proven guilty, so why does not the same principle apply to human beings seeking refuge?
Are we enlightened or are we living in an age of fear and suspicion where we convict and judge people as guilty before we even attempt to seek any proof of guilt?
I seriously hope not.

Opinion is a point of view....so is perspective

How we see things, often depends on whether we see the whole picture or mere a part of it. If this is all we see, then this is probably a black square. Engaging one's imagination, perhaps one may go on to create a narrative to go along with it: This could be a close-up of something black as in a black laptop, a black mouse pad, a black car, or the end of universe, the bottom of a very deep and light-less cave, a black square on a chess board, etc. etc. Or, it could be just a black square, full stop. In order to move past the concept of it being just a black square, more information is needed. So, let me offer more information.

                                                                                      Some more information. What is this now? A         black square with some other colours on it? An abstract painting? Clouds on a dark night with outlines of trees, buildings, or other objects? Even with a vivid imagination, it would be difficult to say for sure what this may actually be....more information is needed, although some of us may be quite satisfied with viewing it as just an abstract painting.
                                                                     

Okay. Now one can see definitive outlines. With the addition of more information one may safely conclude that this is a specific something. The colours, and the lines, .....the placement of them seem deliberate.  What it actually depicts is still hard to tell, although for some of us it may still be an abstract painting...and that's okay, no further information needed. For someone curious by nature (such as myself), this image would probably conjure up a desire for more information in order to find out what the "bigger picture" is...
The definitive lines, the deliberate placement of them, the choice of colours and the placement of them, the brush strokes.... sometimes precise and sometimes wispy....more information, please.

Aha! It's a bird of some sort.... a raven? A crow? A black bird? Just that little bit more of a perspective/information and there is enough information to deduce that this is definitely some kind of bird.
There is a beak, the head looks like a birds head, and it does not take much imagination to "see" parts of its wings. It would now be difficult to describe the image as an abstract image, for most of us this is now a "figurative" image depicting a bird. (What kind of bird, well, that may vary.)

The "bigger picture". That, which from the beginning was just a black square, now, with the disclosure of more and more information, I think I can now safely say that we all see a bird of some kind, and being the person who painted this image, I can add one more bit of information; it is a crow. Albeit my own interpretation......

So, what is this blog all about? you may ask.
Perspective, or put another way: point of view.
Having an opinion, a point of view, is something common to most of us. What is also common for most of us is that we often form our opinions quite quickly without reflecting on exactly how and or why we have come to hold those opinions.

Speaking from my own experiences, I have had to alter my opinions/perspectives many times about many things. First hand experiences, seeking additional information, deepening one's understanding, increasing one's knowledge base, and or listening to others points of view, can be very helpful in being able to see a bigger picture. (According to some, how we view life is a matter of perspective.)
Opinions, although they may often feel like the "truth", are often views based on our beliefs about something more often than facts, and or knowledge.
What do you see? A black square. What if I told you that it is actually the breast part of a crow? Don't be silly. What if I showed you that it is? How are you going to do that? By showing you a bigger picture. The black square is just a small part of the crow.

"Most misunderstandings in the world could be avoided if people would simply take the time to ask: what else could this mean?"  (Shannon L. Alder)

"For what you see and hear depends a good deal on where you are standing: it also depends on what sort of person you are."  (C. S. Lewis)

We begin to learn wisely when we are willing to see the world from other people's perspective."
                                              (Toba Beta)