Greetings and salutations. As one might suppose, I have something on my mind. A concept that affects almost every single situation and every single person has been forefront for me these past few days. That concept is perception.
This term, utilized in behavior, thought, action, art, architecture, involves all of our senses. Think for a moment how many times we use perception every day. From things we touch, taste, hear, see, think … perceptions are with us almost always in all ways. “Men are disturbed not by the things that happen, but by their opinion of the things that happen,” said Epicetetus, a Greek Stoic philosopher who died in 135 A.D. Epicetetus is long gone, but his observation remains relevant today.
I have claustrophobia. Now, I am not talking “oh, please do not make me get in the elevator” claustrophobia, or the “geessshh, this closet is really confining” claustrophobia. Nope, I am referring to the level that would qualify me as an Olympian Claustrophobic if there were such a classification. I cannot go into a cave, even a big one like Mammoth, and do not even think about putting something over my head and holding my arms and legs down. The mere thought causes instantaneous hyperventilation and a stream of questionable language that might cause a longshoreman to blush. I mean no disparagement of any kind to those in the longshoreman profession.
So, you may be asking, is this relevant? What does this have to do with perspective?
I am getting to that. I had to have an MRI last week. OK, so millions of people have MRIs and live to tell the tale, right? Well, from the precise moment when I was scheduled for the procedure, I immediately hurtled right by concerned and headed straight for debilitating panic. Seriously, the very thought of getting into that tube and being unable to move made the act of breathing almost impossible. I became obsessed contemplating the number of ways in which I might meet my demise — none of which were particularly appealing.
Of course, I loudly and incessantly shared my fear and concerns with every person who unfortunately ventured into hearing range of my shrill and shrieking self. Finally, one of my unquestionably oldest (in time not in age) and dearest friends, you know, one of those friends who really really knows you and still manages to tolerate and even like you? Well, she said, in the very kindest of terms, “Bill, just get over it….suck it up, do it, and quit talking about it.” The perception thing raised its ugly little head. Her perception was “enough already.” I needed to don my big girl pants, breathe, think of something else, and just do it. My perception was that I was going to enter a tube of death and annihilation from whence I may never return. Perception
Perception is a noun that means a particular attitude toward or way of seeing something, like a point of view. As a sort-of-grown-up adult, I recognized her perception and even could hear the sense of what she was saying. It mattered little to that voice, one of the many which resides permanently in my head, by the way, because I was teetering on the razor edge of hysteria. At the time, my perception of impending doom in a tiny, narrow, metallic tube adequately silenced anything even remotely related to logic.
Well, I know you are extremely interested in how my encounter with the dreaded MRI apparatus transpired. You may be relieved and mildly surprised to know that I did go through with it. I did not exhibit any untoward act resulting in any long-term embarrassment to myself and/or to my daughter, my designated driver; I did not cause any physical or emotional trauma to the kind nurse who thrust me into the tube. Suffice it to say that she and I will not be “doing lunch” any time in the foreseeable future, but she did smile as I left the Imaging Center.
Perception is an interesting thing actually. A few years ago, a person who was in a run for the White House said, “If you’re innocent, why are taking the Fifth Amendment? The mob takes the Fifth.” Last week, that same person pled the Fifth. His perception of what pleading the Fifth means and who might do it drastically changed. Often that is exactly what spurs all of us to alter our perceptions about any number of things. We are faced head on with a situation that modifies our perceptions.
This is a good thing really. Our perceptions should be flexible and adaptable as we become aware of actions, words, facts, beliefs that we may not have been aware of previously. Calibrating our perceptions is a completely human thing to do. Think of the times our first perceptions of a person or event have changed with time, familiarization, or additional awareness.
Here’s the Thing: We all, people on every stratum of humanity and society, function under, around, beneath, and within our perceptions. Perhaps it would be worthwhile for us on occasion to analyze and question the inception, reference, validity, and impact of our perceptions on how we behave, react, interact, judge ourselves, others, situations and events. One of my all-time favorite quotes pertaining to perception is by Nietzsche. “Those who were seen dancing were thought to be insane by those who could not hear the music.” I hope we all will forever hear the music.
