Chapter 5 – Life
is Not About the Big Picture
If you were to look at the picture above,
you’d see a bunch of numbers on a very dirty laptop screen. You might even see
the large white blob of light on the bottom left of the picture from the flash
of Sheldon’s camera. Those weren’t the things Sheldon was actually taking a
picture of. Sheldon wasn’t focused on the big picture of the laptop with
numbers floating across the screen. His eye went directly towards the fine
details of the ceiling fan.
Sheldon examines everything in the world
around him in the same way that he examined those bubbles we discussed in the
second chapter – with exacting detail. He’ll spin spoons and balls for hours
and look at them from different angles. He watches them from above, as we would
expect him to. Then he lies with his cheek on the floor and one eye closed, so
he can see them spinning from head on. (Did you know that you can see them
wobbling from this angle? Ask me how I know!) Sheldon doesn’t miss a thing, and
he truly appreciates things down to every minute detail.
When You Focus on the Big Picture, You
Miss the Picture Altogether
Behold
what manner of love the Father has bestowed on us, that we should be called
children of God! Therefore the world does not know us, because it did not know
Him. Beloved, now we are children of
God; and it has not yet been revealed what we shall be, but we know that when
He is revealed, we shall be like Him, for we shall see Him as He is. And
everyone who has this hope in Him purifies himself, just as He is pure. (1 John
3:1-3)
“It
has not yet been revealed what we shall be.” In other words, only God knows. As
people, it’s just natural that we are curious about what our future holds. We
want to know who God wants us to be, and what path our lives are going to take.
I know that I’ve personally spent hours asking God to reveal His plan for my
life to me.
It’s
perfectly okay to ask God to reveal His plans to us. We just have to be
prepared to accept His answers when they come. You see, only God knows the big
picture of our lives. As humans, we have limits to our understanding, and we
aren’t always given the big picture, because we wouldn’t understand all of the
complex details necessary for that picture to fall into place. God usually guides
us in the direction of the very next step He wishes us to take so that we don’t
miss the lessons He has for us to learn along the way.
What
I’ve learned from watching Sheldon and then looking at my own life is that I’m
so busy seeking out the big picture that I miss the blessings that each step
along the way provides. Life isn’t necessarily about the end result – only God
knows what that will be anyway, it’s about the journey. It’s so easy for us to
focus on the destination that we miss the journey altogether.
I
think we do this in our daily lives as well. We get caught up in routines, time
crunches, deadlines, and all the things we have
to do that we miss all the things we are
blessed to be able to do. In the evenings, I’m so busy getting Sheldon fed
and ready for bed while also getting Cory’s dinner ready for his short dinner
period that I often miss the opportunity to spend time with Cory when he’s
home. My mind is consumed with the
evening routines for Sheldon. In the same respect, I miss sharing those tiny
little moments of joy with Sheldon because I’m too busy trying to take care of
him that I completely forget to enjoy the blessings of his company.
Can
you relate to this? Is your life so busy that you miss the blessings of
details? In our “get it now” society, when things are handed to us seconds
after requesting them, we focus on results and miss the importance of the
process of getting there. Details matter. Moments matter. It’s really up to us
to decide if we are going to actively seek out and appreciate each detail of
our day as we live it, or if we are going to let those moments pass us by.
Be Present In
Every Moment
The
things Sheldon does on a daily basis never cease to surprise us. One day he’ll
lick the television. The next he’ll demand that you take a bite of the food you
are eating and then breathe on him so that he can determine if it’s something
he might like or not. One moment he’s laughing hysterically. The next he’s
banging his head on the arm of the chair. Then you’ll look up, and he’s taking
baby steps throughout the house hunched over with his head turned to the side,
one eye closed, and his hind end sticking up in the air. A moment later he’s
chewing on a plastic pine needle from an artificial Christmas tree.
You
really just never know what to expect from moment to moment in our house, and
while I may sometimes get disgusted at some of the things Sheldon does (like
licking the television), at least he can say he knows what it tastes like. He
can honestly say that he knows how each thing in our home looks from every
single angle. His life is full because he is present in each and every moment
he lives, and he’s not afraid to truly experience
life.
One
of the main reasons that Sheldon can truly be present in each moment of his
life centers around the truth that he is who he is, and he really doesn’t care
what anyone else thinks about it. Sheldon doesn’t realize that he’s “different”
than anyone else. I’m not sure that he would care even if he did realize it. He
likes what he likes. He hates what he hates. He does what he likes to do, and
the opinions of those around him have no effect on him whatsoever.
Everyone
should be blessed by the experience of going to the grocery store with Sheldon
just one time. It’s quite an experience! He’s so engrossed in staring at his
hands or watching products move by through the holes in the cart, that he pays
no attention to the other shoppers in the store who are staring at him with
puzzled looks on their faces. While I’m checking out, he and Daddy will stand
by the automatic doors, and he’ll dance an excited little jig as he makes them
open and close. Little elderly ladies may quip at him, and other mothers might
give him (and Daddy) dirty looks, but Sheldon doesn’t care one bit. He loves to
watch things move, and it doesn’t matter to him if other people approve or not!
Sheldon
doesn’t let other people prevent him from cherishing the things that make him
happy. He doesn’t let society dictate what he should or shouldn’t enjoy. He
simply lives each moment exactly as it is.
This
lesson really hit home with me especially, since I miss a lot of life while
being trapped in my bedroom with a migraine. I’ve missed birthday parties,
get-togethers, and church functions because I can’t stand the sunlight so I
can’t leave my cave. I’ve had family members tell me that I’ve ruined my
husband and son’s lives with this “migraine nonsense” because I can’t withstand
a little pain (I wish it were little!). I’ve completely destroyed any financial
stability we might ever have had. I’ve been told that they would be better off
without me. And for quite some time, I believed it.
Then
I would watch a little boy who didn’t care what those people thought. He loves
his Momma, and he drags me all over the house to play with him each and every
moment I am well. He doesn’t care what people think. He knows his Momma loves
him, and he’s determined to make the most of every minute he has with me. Why
couldn’t I do the same?
Since
we haven’t yet found effective preventative measures to keep the migraines at
bay, I became inspired by my little guy, and I’m even more determined to truly
enjoy those moments that I am well enough to join my family in their everyday
lives. I don’t care if the laundry is slowly becoming a small mountain. It
doesn’t matter if the floors are covered in potato chip debris. If my baby
wants to play with his Momma, I’m going to play with him. Chores can wait for
moments he wants to be alone or after he’s asleep. I want to be like Sheldon
and experience as much of life as I possibly can.
Are
you present? When you spend time with your spouse, children, family, or friends
do you truly enjoy and savor those experiences, or do you feel like life is
passing you by, and you aren’t really a part of it? Do you drag yourself out of
bed in the morning, dreading the day ahead of you, or do you arise with
rejoicing at the new day the Lord has blessed you with?
I
challenge you to take a page out of Sheldon’s book, and experience each and
every aspect of your life for the next week. Look at things from a different
angle. Taste things you would never have considered tasting before. Get on the
floor with your children and see life as they see it. Turn your head, close one
eye, and focus on the details of life that surround you.
When
you are present and truly experience each moment of your life, I think you’ll
be amazed at the care God places in every facet of your daily life. A life of
praise, joy, and thanksgiving will naturally follow.
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