Friday, April 25, 2008

the world is green

Have you noticed?

I went for a run yesterday evening, and although I have run this particular route countless times, I felt like I was seeing it for the first time. It was so green. Green, green everywhere. The way the trees and plants draped the roads, green was all I could see. At some points, the trees were so tall, they made a kind of a canopy over my head. Almost like a cathedral ceiling.

But as I ran, I thought "man, it's so green...it's almost...fake?" Like someone had painted everything this vivid bright green. But of course that doesn't make sense, because the trees, the plants, the grass - this is the real world. But I am so entrenched in my everyday life, my repetitive thoughts, my numb senses. That I actually get out to the real world and I can't even fathom it being real. Being so green. Seeing those colors and the depths of them. How the color green that I think about every day pales in comparison to the green I saw yesterday.

Before my brain goes on overload trying to wrap thoughts around nature & reality, think about what this means in different areas of life. So for Iraq...we have been there a long time, and all anyone can think about is how we need to leave, how tired we are of death, the list goes on. But have we, as Americans, become so entrenched in anti-war thinking, that we can't see the reality over there? Only a privileged few know what is really going on over there. But what about the stories of hope? The new freedoms established?

Or what about the presidential campaign? When will we extricate ourselves from the emotions and critically think about the issues at hand? What is the reality of this campaign? What does it mean practically for each one of our lives?

Or what about our 9-5 lives? I must confess, mine wears me down and dulls my senses. How can I break out of the doldrums and feel something fresh? Feel something real? My short run through the green, I felt the enormity of the world. It's huge. There's so much out there. There are more real colors to see, and more real experiences to have. Life is so short...and there's so much more I want to do!

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