Learning to see: Lessons in blue and green

For a few days a couple weeks ago, I saw blue and green everywhere. And nearly every time I saw it, I took a picture. I realize this may seem strange—and maybe futile and silly. Maybe so, but the result was worth the oddities.

You see, the picture snapping was more than a whim: it was a birthday decoration project for a workmate’s office. Given the general culture of our office, such behavior is not so unusual What is worth noting is the outcome in my own perception. Once I began looking for blue and green, the colors were everywhere. On one morning walk, I snapped nearly 50 pictures.

Given this small window into the workings of perception, I begin to wonder:

  • How much of what I perceive is determined by what I’m looking for?
  • What have I missed because I’m not looking for it?
  • How much filtering happens at a subconscious level, well beyond my direct control?

Funny thing is, this really is not news; I have known of such filters for decades. My knowledge had slipped behind some unknown filter, now transformed by birthday decor and weekday writing. I was not intending to remember how my own mind determines what I perceive, yet I put into play the very things that caused me to remember.

Where a direct approach would have been futile, the indirect approach has transformed.

About Laura

My name is Laura and I am on a journey, pondering the implications of God's glorious design of humanity and integrating sundry aspects of this design into a description of what it means to be the new humanity.
This entry was posted in in the world. Bookmark the permalink.

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.