Beyond the Obvious

“There's nothing wrong with enjoying looking at the surface of the ocean itself, except that when you finally see what goes on underwater,you realize that you've been missing the whole point of the ocean. Staying on the surface all the time is like going to the circus and staring at the outside of the tent.”

                          ~ Dave Barry

I came downstairs yesterday morning and looked out the windows of my kitchen into the yard.  Everything was a little wet, so I knew it must have rained during the night.  It was still a little misty outside too.

At first, looking out through the screening of the porch,
this is what I saw.  My backyard.

Sometimes, we see what we expect to see.
Sometimes, in our attempt to get the big picture,
      we miss out on all the possibilities out there.

That morning, I changed my focus slightly.
It's funny how you are able to see the world differently
    with a slight change of focus.

The pattern of the raindrops on the screen sent me rushing to get my camera!

It's moments like these that make a photographer's day!

Focusing on the raindrops instead of the yard changed the picture entirely!

But then, what would it look like if I got a little closer?

Knowing I wouldn't be able to hold the camera still enough,
I got my tripod out and attached the camera.

Then I changed the focus again.

 As the focus changed, I captured more new and unexpected beauty!

 Until finally the image was sharp once again.

It was at this point that I knew where the real picture was.
I would NEVER have imagined what I saw!
It was sooooo cool!

But I needed my macro lens.

Going even closer, this is what I noticed.

If you look into each droplet of water, what do you see?

I'll get even closer.

In each droplet, I could see an upside-down reflection of my yard.  In this picture the grey shed with white trim is obvious.

In this picture, I changed position and now you can see the pathway and gate leading into the yard.

And here is a nice view of my deck with an ornament which hangs right in front of the screen!

The world has so much to offer if we take the time to look.
Dig a little deeper.
Change your perspective.
Adjust your focus.

In your world, your life, your relationships.

Look beyond the obvious and you might find the real beauty.