Looking vs Seeing
On my way to work this morning, I was listening to Sounds of the Sabbath. They were sharing an interesting story/observation.
It was about a boy who loved spending time with his father in the mountains. He remembers that almost every time they stopped to take breaks, his father would look out over the valley and say, "Look, do you see that buck over there?" He said that he would look and look, squinting his eyes and scanning the area his father was pointing at. His father would get point, describe, and even turn his head in the direction the buck was standing. Yet, it was very rare that he could see the deer.
Sometimes he felt like just nodding and saying, "Wow, that is a real beauty." Even when he did not see anything so that he would not look foolish in the eyes of his father.
I liked the story. It loved the analogy that was shared along with it. It has kept my mind active all day. I was teaching a class today on a subject that was somewhat challenging to understand. Many of the students started the day, just looking at the screen. However, it was very clear that they were not seeing what we were talking about. There was just a bunch of blank stares. I had to change directions, methods, and examples to make sure they were not just looking, but that they were seeing what we were talking about.
There is a difference between looking and seeing. As the class progressed, it was nice to see the lights go on and know that they were seeing and not just looking. The more we practiced the better able they were to see what was going on.
What was the difference, they were training their eyes for key things to look for. They were conditioning their minds to understand the concepts we were talking about. There is very little we do in life that is any different.
The storyteller shared with us that as he got older, he was soon able to see the deer before his father. But it was not something that came to him naturally. He had to diligently work on achieving what he wanted. We all do. We have to be willing to put into it what we want out of it. The scriptures, prayer, school, work, or what ever else we do. We need continually practice looking for what we want, and then search, squint, turn, scan, and what ever else it takes to see what is before us.
It was about a boy who loved spending time with his father in the mountains. He remembers that almost every time they stopped to take breaks, his father would look out over the valley and say, "Look, do you see that buck over there?" He said that he would look and look, squinting his eyes and scanning the area his father was pointing at. His father would get point, describe, and even turn his head in the direction the buck was standing. Yet, it was very rare that he could see the deer.
Sometimes he felt like just nodding and saying, "Wow, that is a real beauty." Even when he did not see anything so that he would not look foolish in the eyes of his father.
I liked the story. It loved the analogy that was shared along with it. It has kept my mind active all day. I was teaching a class today on a subject that was somewhat challenging to understand. Many of the students started the day, just looking at the screen. However, it was very clear that they were not seeing what we were talking about. There was just a bunch of blank stares. I had to change directions, methods, and examples to make sure they were not just looking, but that they were seeing what we were talking about.
There is a difference between looking and seeing. As the class progressed, it was nice to see the lights go on and know that they were seeing and not just looking. The more we practiced the better able they were to see what was going on.
What was the difference, they were training their eyes for key things to look for. They were conditioning their minds to understand the concepts we were talking about. There is very little we do in life that is any different.
The storyteller shared with us that as he got older, he was soon able to see the deer before his father. But it was not something that came to him naturally. He had to diligently work on achieving what he wanted. We all do. We have to be willing to put into it what we want out of it. The scriptures, prayer, school, work, or what ever else we do. We need continually practice looking for what we want, and then search, squint, turn, scan, and what ever else it takes to see what is before us.
Comments