A change of scenery. It is a cliche until you feel the heartbeat of the two words that give life to the statement: scenery and change. Every experience has scenery, and all scenery requires interaction of an observer in order to exist. Yet all too often the natural scenery that surrounds us is subliminal background, negative space, surrounding the experience of making it through the day. And when the effort of making it gets too big, and pushes even harder against that negative space, we opt to shift locations, to alter the external artwork, to change where we are in the world.

Desire to change where we are, however, overlooks the high likelihood of seeing the same world wherever we go. The expectation is of a magical force of place altering the motion of plate tectonics and realigning our inner landscape. We may not even realize desire is masking the urge to flee.
It is at this point when we need to take a breath, raise our eyes and encourage the background to come forward, if for just a moment. Notice the subtle way 4 inches of snow peeks and bends over a stone wall. Let the flick of a deer’s ear inform the power of the present. Let the play of squirrels usher in the desire to enjoy where we are. Instead of changing the scenery, try changing the vision.