The winds howled as the snow fell. We didn’t get as much snow as expected, but it was blowing. The sun was mostly hidden throughout the day, creating a gray, almost blizzard appearance outside. I have two floor to ceiling windows in my office, and I turned to the side just in time to catch movement out of the corner of my eye. Was a mouse running for cover outside?
I don’t think I’ve ever seen a mouse outside, probably because it’s easier for them to hide. If what I saw would have been a mouse, it would have been a brave (or stupid) one, since the temps were below zero, and the wind chill made it feel much colder. It would be odd for a mouse to not be bedded down already, especially running away from a building instead of close to the edge for protection.
Obviously, it wasn’t a mouse. It was a leaf scurrying in the wind.
It makes me wonder what else I see out of the corner of my eye that I perceive inaccurately. Or what I think in the corners of my mind that is inaccurate. Or what I feel in a fleeting moment that doesn’t truly capture the emotion of the situation. I want to be better about assumptions and take the time to observe and respond well.
You are not alone in misperception my friend. Yesterday I walked in our neighborhood and thought I saw a squirrel high up in a tree; I could see its tail swinging down and its ears at the top of its nest, or so I thought. When I turned around to walk back home, I relooked at the nest and realized it was shreds of some material that I had seen blowing in the wind; whatever was at the top of the nest wasn’t a squirrel’s head, it was other nest material sticking up. It made me chuckle, and also gave me pause. I just had new lenses put in my glasses, so why was I not seeing things correctly? I have reconciled this by realizing I just needed to look more closely instead of assuming that I had seen a squirrel.
Thanks for the sanity check!
You are most welcome!