Wednesday, July 12, 2006

Shifty Eyes


Shifty eyes are a sign of an unsettled and insecure soul.
-Josef Stalin

Now..it's not every day..that I quote Stalin. But this quote happens to be on the mark.

Imagine if we rewind our life and watch from the beginning.
Imagine if we could split what we see in two.
What we see with a straightforward gaze.
What we see from the corners of our eyes.
In your gaze you’d see your children/Out of the corner of your eye you’d see your new message on your Blackberry
In your gaze you’d see your Siddur/Out of the corner of your eyes you’d see who’s coming in so late
In your gaze you’d see your spouse/Out of the corner of your eyes you’d see your neighbors spouse
In your gaze you’d see out the window of the bus/Out of the corner of your eyes you’d see the new gadget of the guy across the aisle from you
In your gaze you’d see the check you’re about to give to Tzedaka/Out of the corner of your eyes you’d see what the next guy is giving
In your gaze you’d enjoy your home and garden/Out of the corner of your eyes you’d see your neighbors new car

I’ve noticed oftentimes while driving that I can drive many miles entirely in my peripheral vision without focusing on the road before me.
Is it possible to live life like that?
To be so busy living in the periphery? That you just notice the road before you enough not to crash?
Why is it so hard to be grounded?
To allow your eyes to hold a gaze to feel a sense of place and time.
To be rooted in a moment.
Do you ever talk to someone and they’re just not there? Looking past you. Thinking about the next thing. Looking at the next person.
Focus
Hold a gaze
Look your life in the eye
Let the moment embrace you
Only I could live MY life..and I cannot live anyone else’s.

Even as I’m writing this..I could feel at least 4 pairs of peripheral eyes straining to peek..
Sheesh.

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23 Comments:

Blogger anonym00kie said...

you are too brilliant! wow.. im so behind in commentnig on your blog.. but this one i cant push aside.. this one was asbolutely incredible. im printing it out and keeping as a reminder..

July 12, 2006 9:16 PM  
Blogger Bonnie B said...

Yes but if you stay focused on the road ahead, you'll miss "the bus" coming at you from your blind spot.
Or maybe you won't miss it at all because you never saw it coming in the first place so you didn't know it was missing. Maybe you won't have a "blind spot" if you are truly focused on what you have in the here and now. If you are focused, maybe you'll know to jump out of the way of the bus. Maybe I've had too much coffee and you've just really got me thinking.

I think this is one of my favorites. It speaks on so many levels. You are so brilliant, so talented. You give me food for thought just about every day.

Now, you've reinforced an important lesson "keep your eyes to yourself." It works for me, but then I'm suffering from kid enforced sleep deprivation

July 13, 2006 1:15 AM  
Blogger the only way i know said...

I LOVE this post..
want to think about it for a little while, then comment
EXCELLENT!
cute about the 4 pairs of straining eyes..lol

July 13, 2006 3:20 AM  
Blogger the only way i know said...

as Mookie said - WORTH PRINTING (AND WILL)

July 13, 2006 3:20 AM  
Blogger FrumGirl said...

I am guilty! Thing is, do I want to focus my attention? If I did, I would. Life is too short to not allow myself to respond to different things that grab my attention. The things that I choose to focus on stay in my focus.

And I barely drive peripherally, thats insane David, lol

July 13, 2006 8:54 AM  
Blogger socialworker/frustrated mom said...

Wow another winner!!! Terrific visions(no pun intended) you have! Another must publish.

July 13, 2006 9:20 AM  
Blogger David_on_the_Lake said...

anonym00kie...
wow..thanks.

bonnie....
I suppose just like when u drive...ur aware of whats going on in your periphery even though ur focus is on the road.
Yes..keep ur eyes to yourself is a good idea..or as my mom would say..Look in your own plate.
:-)
Thank you..

theonly...
ok..I shall await ur comment with abated breath...
:-)

student...
Thanks. The truth has its way of hitting home..doesnt it?
btw..whatever happened to ur blog?

FG....
well...I never said that u cant peek into ur periphery once in awhile...It's natural...and healthy
But we can't let that become the primamry focus..which happens all too often.

as for my driving..I think we're all guilty of it once in awhile..lol

SWorker...
Thanks....will do
one day
:-)

July 13, 2006 10:55 AM  
Blogger Mata Hari said...

Actually - that's what I'm trying to do....i.e. focus

I check my email, check on news and others sites, do some work, make some phone calls...it's a lot of "stuff" coming at you.
And like you said, so many people talk to someone while actually looking over their heads or around the room. Gotta keep trying.
Well written (as usual) post.

MH

July 13, 2006 2:23 PM  
Blogger kasamba said...

David, that is such a huge issue!!!!!
If people would only compare themselves to themselves.. the world would be a much better (and easier!) place!

July 13, 2006 6:33 PM  
Blogger David_on_the_Lake said...

limey...
lol...this aint musser as I remember it way back,...
oh..and thanks for the soccer videos...just what I was lacking

Eshet...
I agree..its no fun being the object of staring..Unless ur a celelbrity or something..lol

mata...
yup...gotta try and stay focused..
Thanks

Kasamba..
I agree...It really would!

July 13, 2006 10:15 PM  
Blogger SS said...

David, once again, you're right on the mark! Ahhh, but HOW to stay "rooted in the moment"?

July 14, 2006 1:19 AM  
Blogger exsemgirl said...

Amazing post, as usual. Indeed as limey says, my almost daily mussar introspective lesson :)

It drives me nuts when I am trying to talk to someone and they are 'not there' as you say. Yet so often I am not truely 'where' I should be.

Though sometimes I wish I could read posts with the sides of my eyes and have a constant clear eye for life...instead of vice versa ;)

July 14, 2006 5:42 AM  
Anonymous Anonymous said...

As long as we don't lose focus of what is really important in our lives, I think that the peripherals serve the purpose of keeping us grounded, of giving us what to compare our lives to, to see if our lives are "working" for us or not. Sort of like the lane markings on the outter corners of the road which indicate where the road ends and the shoulder begins.

July 14, 2006 9:05 AM  
Blogger the only way i know said...

what definitely happens by me,
is
i'm talking to someone,
listening to the conversation and 'peripherally' studying everything else about them...
prob is,
if my mind wanders into itself... and gets absorbed in the 'study' - i lose track
and then i'm like - 'wha? what did you just say?' lol
that's one example of periphery..

July 14, 2006 1:11 PM  
Blogger David_on_the_Lake said...

ss....
Thanks
You just take 10 minutes...close ur eyes..breathe in..and take stock of ur life...

exsem....
Thanks
Its funny..because I'm so not the musser giving type of guy..I'm just an observer of things..
I know what u mean..its quite annoying.
They say Stalin..when he spoke to you..his eyes were so intently on you the whole time..and anyone who he perceived as having shifty eyes..and "not being there" well...
hmmm I dont have a gulag system at my disposal..so I just have to vent here..lol

student...
Hmmm oh well
Good shabbos to you too

Itsallgood...
yes...as long as we know to focus on our road..our eyes can wander a little if its done in a healthy manner

theonlyway...
Hmmmm youre definitley a candidate for the gulag...
lol

July 14, 2006 2:12 PM  
Blogger the only way i know said...

heeeelp!
lol
good shabbos

July 14, 2006 3:16 PM  
Blogger Sarah Likes Green said...

great post... modern society has too many distractions. always so many things going on, phones ringing, machines beeping, radios blaring... you become used to having to look in all different directions, worrying what else is going on... thank you for the reminder to take time out to just embrace the moment!

shavua tov!

July 15, 2006 11:44 AM  
Blogger David_on_the_Lake said...

Thats so true Sarah....its crazy..how many things fight for attention..

July 16, 2006 12:59 PM  
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