I picked red raspberries last evening, a good night to do so with wind and few mosquitoes. The secret to getting every berry is to pick carefully going in one direction, then coming down the same row in the opposite direction. The different perspective yields more berries. Paula D’Arcy in her book Seeking with All My Heart tells of the death of family members, victims of a drunk driver. For her the driver was a “symbol of negativity and loss,” “an enemy and a force of ruin.” Then through a powerful experience of forgiveness, she saw that same man as “an agent of love.” Her different perspective yielded a deeper spiritual life. This morning I’m looking from one perspective at the coming day. Cooking meals at Lial Renewal Center, shopping for groceries, playing piano for the parish Mass. At the end of the day I will look back from a different perspective. Will I see feeding the hungry, leading the people in praise of God, and taking care of things that need to be done?

Today practice changing perspective. From how many angles can you see a situation? The reality may be closer to the perspective from which God sees.