Zoom Out

You ever take a photo that won’t match the beauty of your eye’s perspective because the camera just isn’t as zoomed out as the human eye?

There’s a Taoist story about a farmer whose horse runs away. It’s terrible news. But then the horse returns with 12 wild horses. It’s wonderful news. But then the farmer’s son’s leg is broken by one of the wild horses. Terrible news. But then the army comes to take all able-bodied men and the son can stay with his father. And so the story goes, ever changing from tragedy to triumph, depending on where we stop the story.

I used to lament the “biggest mistake of my life” (my words), when I first said “maybe” to my wife who asked if we could get a dog. But with that single softening of my “no,” a road unfolded which brought me to fatherhood; and it has been the greatest joy I’ve ever known. That “maybe” was the best “mistake” I ever made.

People talk about successes where they lost weight; but then they regained it. Was that a success? Or people talk about how they haven’t seen enough results yet while working steps. Aren’t healthy steps, not superficial looks, real success?
​
Zoom out. A lot of times we think our situation is a curse. But that’s usually because we’re zoomed in on a tough moment. Zoomed out, our demarcation for success, progress, love, you name it, changes 180 degrees. So zoom out.