Coprolite Newsletter, July 2007

Although I usually can't remember where I left my glasses a half hour ago, for some strange reason I can remember an awful lot of things that happened when I was just a toddler. One special memory I have is when my folks took me to the circus.

I don't recall being tremendously impressed by the animals or clowns. But I'll never forget the aerialists. They did a stunt that blew my mind. It wasn't any of the gyrations and acrobatics they performed on the trapeze or tight rope. Their most amazing trick came before that stuff even began.

As I sat there at floor level and watched them make the long climb up to the top, I saw them slowly shrink in size. They were tall adults when they started out, and were teeny little dolls when they got to the top! How did they do that?

Obviously, I had no understanding of perspective at that stage in life. My eyes, which didn't need glasses in those days, showed me very clearly what was happening. My mind just didn't quite know how to process the information. It took a while to develop an understanding of perspective.

I like to think that this process continues all through life, and that as we age our sense of perspective keeps improving all along.

As little children, we learn that people only LOOK smaller when they move a few yards further away from us. This knowledge is essential for aiming a water pistol or playing tag.

As teens, we notice that our parents are no longer bigger than us, but for some reason a person's authority doesn't have as much to do with physical size as we once thought. Even a mom who has to crane her neck to glare into your eyes can still put you on time out.

As young adults, we learn that people can loom large even when you can't see them at all. You may be completely separated from a special someone, but she can fill your senses and thoughts to overflowing.

As middle agers busy with our careers, we come to understand another paradox of perspective. Some co-workers who act very friendly are really not as close to you as they seem. When it comes time to competing for a promotion, you see how small they really are.

And as we acquire the wisdom of seniorhood, we comprehend that nobody in the world is more than a few degrees of separation away from us, and we're all the same size in God's eyes. So far, that seems about as complete an understanding of perspective as I've managed to attain.

Isn't it nice to know that, even as parts of us grow weaker with age, there are still ways in which we get stronger and better through the years?

I'll have to make a note of that comforting idea, just as soon as I find my glasses.

––Wayne Adams
wayne@coprolites.com

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