September 19,  2022

Reflection

2 KINDS OF PEOPLE

There are 2 kinds of people: those who see what's there and those who see what's missing.

I went to the library for a certain book.  The book I wanted wasn't there. 

That experience taught me  to go to the library in order to be surprised - not to look for a certain book.

Surprise!  There are a lot of books in the library. 

There are a lot of books out on loan.

I don't go to the library for books that aren't there.

I discovered the same thing at art museums.  Here and there I noticed blank spots - which had an index sized notice - "On Loan,"

That caused in me a slight feeling of emptiness - I was missing something - and it carried over to my viewing of other paintings - instead of simply enjoying what was there.

I then began to notice the same thing happening to  various  people in restaurants - as they looked at menus. They spotted things that were missing - delights that were dropped for some reason.

Next - because of my growing awareness of this human phenomenon - I would hear people say things like the following: "There are a lot of empty seats in church today - or at the baseball game - or the restaurant - or wherever."

Or, "Where's Charlie? I thought he'd be here."

Or, "Do you have and Dijon mustard?"

Or, "Do you have Sam Adam's beer here?"

Or, "Do you have any hand wipers?"

So are there 2 kinds of people: those who see what and who's there and those who see who and what is missing?

Am I one of those who tend to spot the missing?

Can I change?

Is all this an, "It all depends"?