I have to admit I watched the Academies last night. I haven’t watched them in years so it was rather interesting to see the star studded gowns and up-dos, tuxes and glamour.  What I love about the industry is the illusion, the shifting level of perception the actors portray, the editing creates, the cinematography illuminates. Daniel Day Lewis gave us the extraordinary performance where we the audience believed he was and is the living personification of President Lincoln. Now that’s what I call  the grand illusion of perception. We had the perception or belief, we were seeing Lincoln live.

Isn’t it what life is all about anyway? Perception? What I perceive to be true is not the truth for someone else. The irony is, this is a constant truth, whether it is on the personal level extending out into the grand design of countries, politics and sovereignty, perception of any given reality is the solid unifier, the homogeneous connector. What is real, what is  illusion and what is just a perception? From the micro to the macro, it still comes down to perception, period.

In ‘The Life of Pi,’ nominated as one of the best movies of the year, our protagonist survives against all and the greatest of odds, an arduous and harrowing stormy oceanic voyage with a large carnivorousness tiger. What our intrepid sailor endures is as beautiful as it is calamitous. At the end of his journey the viewer discovers there are two versions of the story; which one is real, which one is the desired perception? In ‘Silver Linings Playbook’, another A-list film, Bradley Cooper’s character lives within a world of meds, anger, family rage and limited filters. The viewer’s perception of this man is ‘he slipped a notch, went off the deep end,’ and yet through a different lens, a new perception, you see the solidness of his truth, his reality as experienced through his choices. Perception.

Extending this idea into our half-(Oh, my perception of the world is it is vastly unconscious) conscious world, the repetitive perception perpetrated in the political arenas and media is fear; fear of the unknown, of Muslims, of terrorists, of militants, extremists, of mountain militias, of drugs, of sex, you- name-it. And after awhile we end up believing the hyperbole due to the consistent, drone-on, chorus of negativity. It’s a mind-screw. We become slaves to the perception. Our view is contrived within a lens of the unified circle of reality with limited  to no vision of what lies beyond the boundary, beyond the mists and into universal vastness. Imagine  the possibilities when we extend outside the borders of illusionary perception, because yes, there are many glorious experiences to be cultivated.

On personal levels it’s fascinating to ask loved ones their perception, their view, on a particular event or topic. It’s amazing the various and different perspectives that are painted.  And we wonder why we don’t always get along or end up with tension, irritation, and not hitting on all cylinders as couples.  We are products of our past, environmental conditioning, society, parenting, linear time, parallel realities, genetics, cellular memory, current events, sexual connections/relationships – not always in the same category – and you wonder why the perceptions vary so dramatically. Add in a global distorted media perception (owned by the same very small group of people) and it’s a wonder we’re not all nuts. Or maybe we are and our perception of normal-ness and sanity have shifted. (wink wink)

My goal is to bring perception under the same roof, to connect our perceived illusions into a cohesive unity of color and fabric, emotion and memory. I feel the best way is to begin as individuals, to see the world from the other side of  the topic, the emotional event. For sake of imagery, imagine a gorgeous, colorfully bright flower arrangement in the center of the room. You have the ability to see yellow roses, sweet pea, white babies breath,  and melon day lilies. Viewed from the other side of the room the flowers are vibrantly heady, though colorfully different. Pink roses are more predominant, white lilies are visible, silver-blue eucalyptus branches spike outwards , sprigs of  fern add depth. Completely different versions of the same product. Dismantling the arrangement together, co-creatively re-constructing the emotional ingredients – the flowers in this example -together allows for a new vision, a new perception of this vibrant reality. It creates new landscape to build upon together as a couple or a nation.

Please take time to discover, identify and dismantle any outmoded perceptions. Be willing to view life from the other side of the event, argument and/or belief.  Extend your mind outside the wall of limited perception and expand how you explore each and every day. Just this past weekend, after a ‘discussion on perceived events’ with my husband, I rearranged the flowers in my kitchen. I watched the illusion of Hollywood.

I regularly step beyond-the-pale, outside the safety zone, past the ineffectual perception. Want to come play?

Cosmic sunshine to you.

I would love to have you share any perceptions you have discovered to be limiting and how you thus have changed your beliefs and subsequently the outcome.