A New Set Of Eyes

On 9 December 1958 a man by the name of Sydney Bradford entered the Wolverhampton eye hospital in the Midlands of England. At the time, Bradford was 52 years old and had been effectively blind since infancy. He had come to the hospital to receive a corneal transplant, which surgeons hoped would provide him with vision for the first time in his life. Within days of the procedure the doctor entered his room to remove the bandages. Bradford described the experience ,"I heard a voice coming from in front of me and to one side I turned to the source of the sound and saw a blur. I realised that this must be a face". Imagine for a moment seeing a face for the first time. Or perhaps the rich maroon of a glass of wine or the exquisite pallet of a butterfly's wings. How moved would you be by the experience. Now fast forward a few years; you seen that face hundreds of times and you barely notice the butterfly as it flits past you on your morning walk. What has changed? Why does the site not leave you reeling in delight at the sheer extravaganza of visual pleasure?

Reflection

The sad truth is that we have been jaded. We have become numb to the things we see too often. The world is no less beautiful, it is our eyes that no longer see and witness this beauty. Remember when you were a kid, the world was a constant source of wonder. Everything was new, fresh and exciting. Well, we all still live in this same world - so it's us that has changed. Due to evolution and human growth, we have become accustomed to our surroundings and things have become the 'norm', but that doesn't mean we cannot constantly appreciate the immense beauty that we usually take for granted. If the sun never rose for an entire month, how delighted would we be when it rises again. Why should we have to wait for something to be gone in order to truly appreciate it? This is the same for everything in our lives, our surroundings, our families our friends, our possessions and the list goes on. Don't wait to appreciate the small things around you. Right now look around you and pretend you are seeing things with a new set of eyes. Slowly look at the textures, the colours, the shapes and appreciate how beautiful everything around you is. If we can change how we see ordinary things, I can assure you our lives will become so much more enriched.

May you have an awesome week, where the ordinary becomes extraordinary! - Darren Zwiers

NOTE: I’ve been attempting (and succeeding!) in noticing the beauty in small things for a while and I would love to hear what you find. I have created a new Facebook Page, like it and share your discoveries here - http://bit.ly/bits2013

"The real act of discovery consists not in finding new lands, but in seeing with new eyes" Marcel Proust