My entire life I have lived by the mantra that I’m not a detail person! I see the big picture and have been known to miss the little things. I’m married to a man that lives in the details of life and has been known to miss the big picture. I guess we are a good fit!
When I bought my big camera a few years ago, it came with two lenses… the regular and the zoom! I spent the first year or so with the zoom lens wrapped neatly and stored in the camera bag. Remember… I’m not a detail person. All of the photo’s I took encompassed the big picture. That was my comfort zone. As I began taking pictures of the beautiful flowers in the yard of the home I owned at the time, I realized that there was so much magnificent detail in each little plant. One day, I ventured out and put on the zoom! Since that day I’ve never looked back! The tables have turned and now my regular lens sits all neatly wrapped and stored in the camera bag. When I take pictures, I get in close and like to capture the intimate details of the person, plant, or place. Using the zoom does pose a few problems when you are taking pictures of larger objects or groups of people. I then have to step back and widen my perspective. Today I ventured back to my regular lens and took a sequence of photo’s from big picture to intimate detail.
Photographing details is what I love to do. I much prefer looking at the intricacies and not the big picture. (I am laughing out loud as I read that being that “I’m not a detail person!”) There are times though, when the big picture is fabulous and I need to make sure I have the proper lens on my camera to capture the moment. A sunset… a large group of people…. a summer meadow. As the person behind the camera, it is important that I use the proper lens to truly capture the moment and all of it’s wonders.
Life is like taking pictures. Some times we need to look at the big picture and other times we need to hone in on the details. This summer I’ve been battling with big picture vs. details in my life. When is it necessary to focus in on the intimate details of a situation and when is the big picture a better option? When my husband and I are at odds, zooming in on the details can make it messier and take my focus off of what is truly the matter at hand. I might zoom in on details that are not related to our disagreement, thus fueling the fire with kindling that does not belong! As step parent, I really need to focus on the big picture with my step children. The teacher in me turns my perspective to the zoom lens and that gets me in trouble. I’m praying furiously this summer for the Lord to change my lens selection. With them, I’m working on developing the big picture of unconditional love, not a zoom lens shot of picky details that I have no control over. I need to find the beauty in the larger photograph that highlights all of their greatness, not just those areas of concern I manage to zoom in on. I think about those darned magnification mirrors that we all have stuck to our bathroom mirrors. They allow us to see things that should not be seen with the human eye! I focus in on a particular wrinkle or stray hair that has popped up and gasp with fright! When I stand back and take in the big picture, that frightening sight is gone…. from the human eye anyway!
I am praying for discernment in my life to know when to zoom in and when to stand back. After all, do I want my life to be the target of everyone’s zoom lens or would I rather them see my big picture?
Thoughts and Reflections on Life 