Who Does Your Thinking?

A very short poem from Robert Louis Stevenson ran through my mind this morning:

The world is so full of a number of things,
I’m sure we should all be as happy as kings.

Now, I can’t personally vouch for the happiness of kings, and I have a feeling that, as a rule, they cannot accurately be described as happy. Nevertheless, the world is full, and I love it.

The snow and wind are dancing and swirling outside my windows, and later, I will need to get out there with my kids and some shovels. The light is flat and dull, but the white frosting on the evergreens is lovely, and the brownish, almost orange leaves that continue to cling to a select few deciduous trees draw my eye and provide a welcome shot of contrast.

Those clinging leaves shouldn’t be there, should they? Science books tell me that deciduous trees drop their leaves in the fall, while coniferous trees don’t. Should I not trust my eyes? Should I make room for anomalies? Should I care?

Keep your certifications and your scientific “truths.” I can manage on my own, thanks. I have learned to keep my eyes open, to pay attention, to look and listen when the “experts” tell me I have no business doing so. Truth is all around me, but it seldom comes with a certificate of authenticity. I cut and paste words, images, and video links and share them with other people who are curious, other people who have decided to think for themselves and who refuse to descend into the pit of despair shown and opened to us by the fear-mongering media that gets paid to tell us lies.

Everything around us points to the truth. It’s all there, but it is seldom neatly packaged, tied with a bow, and given to us. It involves work. We are asked to pay attention, collect, sort, keep, discard, and fit together. We are living in an amazing time, but you’ll miss it if you pull your mask over your eyes, cover your ears, and moan, “Woe to us, woe to us.”