Bigger picture or Closer picture?

Many times, I find I just get too close to something to be able to see the big picture. At times, it is annoying. However, whichever way you look at a problem has its pros and cons. Everything does, really. Take a stance on something, and looking over the fence, it looks better over there, right? Green grass and all that.

So, what does getting too close to something mean for me? Well, I’m not seeing the larger picture, which, if you think about it, might be the better of the two things. Bigger picture or Closer picture? I guess it depends on what you want to see.

Will both stances be the same? Never.

People will tell you one is better than the other, and as I began this piece, I was voting for the larger picture to be the better of the two.

However, I am a Virgo, and Virgos tend to delight in the details. The minutiae are what stir our hearts to action. You’d think we would be orderly and neat. In my case, I am not. Though I can tell you from twenty paces if a picture is not straight. I can sense when a story is not going well. I couldn’t exactly put my finger on whatever is creating an imbalance, but I can feel the balance, like the sextant on a ship.

I have started putting a bit of motivational thought in the header of the pages I write on. This particular page has the words:

Before I write, I listen.

It might not mean anything to you, but as much as I write, I felt I needed a bit of inspiration to stay on course. What better place to have it than on the page that I write? As the page scrolls, I lose sight of it, and, of course, when I write with my eyes closed, I’m not going to see it at all. But it is there. It is for me. It’s how I decorate my space. It is a detail.

I can remember a book I read as a girl. It was how to be popular. It was a formula. There were steps. Thank God I don’t remember more than that. A detailed and itemized list of things to do to be popular. A twelve-year-old girl should not be reading such things, but that was the way of the world back in those days. I was never one of the popular kids. I am not popular now, as far as I can tell. I’d rather not be, truth to tell. I’ve got too much work to do. Too many stories to write. Too many people to reach with important messages like: You can only love well if you love yourself first. Or love will never find you until you love yourself first. That was never in any of those self-help books for popular girls. That was about attracting love.

I must keep reminding myself of balance. Stretch, roll my head, things that will help me to keep pace during my ten-hour writing days. They start early. They end late. It is what I want. It is where I am driven. I hope it strikes a spark for you.

Speaking of sparks. You must begin making your own sparks. Yes, you could wait for inspiration to come to you, but you need to be ready to welcome it. Open the door and lay out the mat in welcome. I have daily things I do to be sure I am ready. If I am too tired, it doesn't work well. Just as if you were at work for 8 hours each day never breaking up the flow with a glance out of a window or a short break, you can be in readiness.

When you are sick, you don't feel like doing anything, right? So, make sure you are ready for these ideas as they come to you. Take the time to play with them. If nothing comes of it, nothing is wasted. The idea will come again if it is worth your time. It will happen.

Thanks for reading. Follow me for more.

🌺 Pauline Evanosky