Distracted by Our Own Vision

I am blind. Not literally but in the "If I didn't have some sort of visual assistance I would not be able to distinguish my own hand from a dog if it were in ten feet in front of me" type of blind. For those who are in the same "forever wishing for 20/20 vision" club then you fully understand the struggle.

Any ways, any glasses-wearer can relate to trying to find a comfortable but practical position that not only allows you to see but also lay with ease against someone without having your frames either jab into half of your face or taking a sideways dive off your nose. So in order to avoid this problem, I find it easier to take my glasses off. In one particular instance, around a month ago, I was leaning against my boyfriend on the couch as we were relaxing and watching something on television when he asked me why I didn't have my glasses on especially when he, a fellow club member, knew very well that I could not see anything in front of me. Without much thought the phrase "I can see everything I need to see," slipped out of my mouth.

After a few seconds and some laughs, I got to thinking. That was not just a cheesy comment, I actually really did not care about the television show we were watching or if a text message popped up on my phone. I did not care about the style of the couch we were sitting on or what the weather was like outside or the thousands of other things I could gaze upon in the room. I cared about the only thing that I could literally see and that was him and the moments happening right now. It was a meteoric moment, one that could have been easily been overlooked by others but it is something I have not been able to get my mind of since it happened. I have been wanting to blog about it for the past month because it got me thinking about just how much we are distracted by our own vision.

Anymore, life seems to be moving faster and faster every day. Perhaps it is because I am getting older and busier and realize how short time is however, I think it has a lot to do with the fact that we engulf ourselves in distractions. Distractions take on many forms from technology (an obvious problem during intimate and important conversations and other times deemed quite unnecessary), stress, addictions or bad habits, our jobs, worrying about the future, fair-weather friends, or simple frustrations and challenges that derail us from our goals. Sometimes we are even blinded by our kryptonite; the very things that keep us going. 

While the amount of time we devote to distractions increases, our time spent focusing on meaningful connections we make with others and the beautiful but most simple parts of life are diminishing. 

Sometimes, all it takes is a break from reality. That is why we all go to foreign cities, take adventures in unknown countries and cruise the open seas after all, isn't it? To get a break from the world and every day life we see for a while? Often, we are so caught up in our daily routine that we develop tunnel vision because we consistently move forward without changing the view or thinking about the entire picture. If it is one thing that those of us in the "forever wishing for 20/20 vision" club have the benefit of, it is that we have the ability to turn off that tunnel vision-that every day view around us- and literally focus only on what we can actually see in front of us to reconnect with what is most important in that moment of time.

It is amazing what is possible when you let go of the things that distract you. You will be surprised at just how hard you can push yourself both physically and mentally and how much better your quality of life will be without being blinded by these distractions.


So I encourage you to live out this quote:

"Every day, set the simple goal of being more awake and less distracted."