7 Signs to Earn Wisdom
Perception is (not) Everything
Welcome back to Wednesday Balms.
For this Season of Wisdom, we will be using a slightly different format.
Rather than start with different sections of writing that coalesce into an experiment at the end, we will be front loading with an experiment and then providing depth for how it works.
The theme of this balm is perception.
Perception is one of the first building blocks of wisdom because it is the first contact zone between us and reality. We use our senses (sight, hearing, smell, touch, and taste) to interact with and acquire information from the world around us. And with that information, we begin to develop understanding, knowledge, and wisdom.
Today’s Line Up:
Experiment
Side A - Perception Story
Side B - Problems of Perception
Side C - Point of the Experiment
Experiment
The next time you’re traveling a familiar path . . .
1) Find and identify seven (7) different signs.
Road sings, street signs, store fronts, advertisements, anything that conveys information.
2) Use your phone to take a picture of each sign.
Only if you can (please don’t use your phone while driving).
3) Look at the pictures and examine the rest of the photo.
Where is the sign located? What is the condition of the area around it? What are some other interesting details?
4) Let us know of any discoveries.
Side A - Perception Story
Kellen: When I was around 10 or 11 my uncle gifted me a new snorkel set. The mask was better than any I had before, and it made the world under the surface so clear and so accessible.
One afternoon, while snorkeling, my eye caught a glimpse of a long, slender fish.
It shimmered past me as the sun rays reflected off its scales and bounced across the mirrored ceiling of the ocean’s surface. I swam in pursuit. When the fish would turn, it was as if I was hit by a flash from a camera with rainbow colors and glimmering auras.
My brain no longer recognized time as a concept as I trailed the fish. The coral reef suddenly changed below me and the bottom of the seafloor was barely visible. My heart pounded as I blew out salty water to clear my snorkel.
Upon breaking the surface, I took off my mask and my stomach sank.
I could barely see the shore and I couldn’t even tell in which direction I came from.
I started kicking and slowly made my way back to shore - feeling as though sharks were coming to nip at my feet because I refused to lose focus of the shore and dip my head back in the water to check.
I was so distracted in the underwater realm, that I lost my orientation to time and space. There was something shiny that I couldn’t help but chase.
Everyday there are moments where I feel confused and uncertain about what I am doing or where I am going. I follow trumpetfish and shiny objects. I forget to wander instead of rush.
In order to really learn my orientation in the world, I must learn to navigate different terrains. The terrain of my mind, emotions, relationships.
This story reminds me that every so often I have to clear my snorkel and come up for air. I look around and see where I am in relation to the shore, the mountains, the sky. I still get lost but once I become oriented I can start making my way back home.
Side B - The Problems of Perception
Myka: Perception provides specific information for a specific moment in time.
Depending on the circumstance, that can either be a strength or a weakness.
As a strength → when you need accurate and immediate information → “smell this thing right in front of you, right now.”
As a weakness → when you need accurate long-term information → “what did your entire day smell like?”
The “weakness” doesn’t even really make sense because we are so accustomed to using perception as a strength.
This quality of specificity of perception becomes a problem when the weakness of perception is used when a strength of perception is needed.
Kellen’s specific perception of the trumpet fish interrupted the necessity of his perception of the shore. It became problematic once his surroundings became too unfamiliar.
Ironically, “perception” is often unnoticed and taken for granted because we are constantly plugged in to our own senses.
For many, the problems of perception don’t appear until they’re noticed (lol).
In the same way that fish hardly perceive water because they are always surrounded by it, we hardly perceive our own senses because we’re always simultaneously using them, but also not using them. There are sounds all around you, all the time. But a good majority of the time, you naturally tune out the unimportant sounds.
It’s only when some of the sense is removed, that we really notice something different.
Examples would be if you’ve ever →
Had a cold and your sense of taste was diminished,
Attended a loud concert and had ringing in your ears for a day,
Just been in a room when a power outage occurs and you can’t see.
You don’t know you’re a fish, until you’re taken out of water.
Kellen: The amount of perceptions we have in a day are immeasurable compared to the amount of perceptions we actually talk about and turn into conversation. That leaves us with the majority of our perceptions shielded from the scrutiny of others and even ourselves.
We often say something out loud and then edit or retract it.
When we stay in certain realms for too long, certain perceptions become enhanced while others degrade. There is a cost to stuckness and structure, as well as a cost to chaos and destruction. The wisdom lies in understanding when to do which. When do we need to come up for air, and when do we need to dive deep and follow something shiny.
Side C - The Point of the Experiment
Myka: Perception is like a telescope.
And the experiment is meant to toggle and strengthen the control of the lens.
Many of us naturally identify and memorize signs that we pass everyday.
However, looking at the small details right next to those signs is meant to show and characterize the fact that perceptions can simultaneously be so close, yet so far. They are right next to the familiar, yet until they are noticed, it is as if they don’t even exist.
When I first read Kellen’s story of perception, one thing that balmed-my-mind was the newly found accessibility that the snorkel and goggles provided him. Until he had that tool for observing things underwater, it was as if that world didn’t even exist. Or at least, it existed, but it wasn’t interesting or captivating until the clarity of perception increased.
Initially, the challenge for writing this article was, “what sort of experiment could act like goggles for an underwater world?”
That meant defining what “underwater” could be in the scenario . . . which eventually lead us to talking about the limits and problems of perception . . .
Ultimately, the experiment is more like an exercise for increasing awareness of things that are typically unnoticed. It is an attempt at bringing something from an unfamiliar and unknown plane into one that is familiar and known. Less a definitive solution to the problems of perception, but more adjusting the comfort with both its strengths and weaknesses.
I like the experiment. I think it leads to a happier lifestyle. When we first took a tour to Japan, a coworker told me of something he did that made the trip more enjoyable. On a tour, you are constantly on the go. You get up, eat breakfast and oftentimes board the bus to your next destination. He said he would get up early and walk around the neighborhood before it was time to board the bus. I thought this was a great idea and did this throughout the trip. I felt by doing this, we got more out of the trip than everyone else and was able to appreciate more of what Japan had to offer. You become aware of the little things that often go unnoticed. Hence, it was a much happier and gratifying experience!