This I believe: ‘Owl eyes’

As a child, I hiked with my uncle on occasional weekends. On these adventures, he would consistently point out obscure and interesting objects, things I’d completely overlooked in my rush to get to our destination. When I asked how in the world he could spot such simple yet beautiful things, his reply was always, “Owl eyes.” The trick he taught me was simply done by placing the sides of my hands against my face, palms facing out, and focusing my vision to include my palms. This posture would immediately widen my scope, and it taught me how to slow down and observe my surroundings with a broader perspective.

I believe that if everyone practiced this skill, our world would slowly become a better place. Our society is fast-paced and has been taken over by hurried lifestyles. We rush from place to place, heads down, our eyes often on our glowing 2-by-4-inch screens. We immerse ourselves in our own lives and problems, and we forget about the difficulties others may be facing. This cultivates a culture where people

often choose isolation because it gives the most freedom to obsess over personal issues or our own success, rather than to include people who are often overlooked, or to notice the beauty of our surroundings.

As I have grown, I have taken my “owl eyes” skill to areas other than hiking.

I think of it more as “zooming out.” I received this second bit of advice at another time in my life and it has become my mantra. After a stressed-out moment I was relating to my sister, as I talked about the way everything was making me feel and how irritating people were, a smile crept across my sister’s face and she interrupted me with two words: “Zoom out.”

As soon as she said this, I began to feel my mental fatigue wash away as I realized my problems were actually quite minimal. As time has gone on, whenever I catch myself getting bogged down by drama, details, or negativity, I remind myself of my sister’s words. Practice has taught me to realize that others’ lives are just as intricate as my own and if I simply take a step back and look at the situation with a broader perspective, I am able to understand and enjoy life’s fleeting moments of beauty a bit more.

I believe in the art of zooming out. The ticking clock of life pressures our minds to default to tunnel vision in order to achieve all that we believe necessary to be successful. But in doing this, we often obliterate mindfulness and miss out on all the good in our lives. My owl eyes have shown me that sometimes, strangers and oddly beautiful moments can become the best part of a day, but not unless we take notice of them. This I believe.