i have knelt on the ground in front of this tree-hollow many times now – in spring, fall, summer, winter. peeking through the hollow-hole to the world on the other side of the tree has revealed sky and trees and the river in many moods. the river has overwhelmed its banks. the river has recessed way across the horizon. the trees and grasses are verdant. the trees and grasses are dormant, waiting. i have knelt there, in front of this little keyhole, and fussed with the depth-of-field, the focal point of my photograph. near. far. near. far.

i have knelt on the ground in front of this tree-hollow many times – my eyes focusing on the edges, my eyes focusing beyond. they look different. different views. but they are the same. it matters where i place my focus. near. far. near. far. either way is truth.

were we to be looking through a hollow-hole at life and standing in front of words we say and deeds we do, would it matter whether we examined them up-close or from a distance? what would it reveal? are they clear, do they blur, do they disclose, or do they hide, an indistinct image.

when you pull them into focus, are they the same? are the words we say consistent with the deeds we do? are we personally abdicating responsibility while at the same time sanctimoniously expecting it of others? are we conveniently focused on our words, our deeds dropping off into depth-of-field glaze? are we claiming righteousness this side of the tree and jumping with both feet into hypocrisy on the other side? where is the focal point?

i have knelt on the ground in front of myself. i have recognized that there have been words and deeds that have not resonated, that have not passed the do-as-i-say-not-as-i-do test. i have looked through the tree-hollow, seeing the trunk-bark up-close and personal; i have looked through the tree-hollow, my eyes on a distinct horizon.

i can only expect that, just as i try again the next day, that each of us tries again the next day. that our words up-close gel with our deeds. that what we say aligns with what we do. that no one sits on a pedestal with nary a view through the tree-hollow-hole, but instead, we each stay aware of the whole picture, up-close and at a distance. we owe that to each other. seems germane, in each little corner of the world. near. far. near. far.

*****

read DAVID’s thoughts this MERELY-A-THOUGHT MONDAY