When you stopped seeing it
Two ladies are having a stimulating conversation… but the conversation is not the important bit. One of them wears a veil because they look quite different to what you and I might expect. The veil is the important bit. The chatter goes on about this and that and then all of sudden the lady without the veil turns and looks as if for the first time; she realises that the veil is gone!
“When did you stop wearing your veil?’ She asks in a surprised but almost joyful tone.
“When you stop seeing it?” The response is swift, astute, insightful and… challenging. It is challenging because I realise that often I don’t perceive people for who they truly are. Others put on veils and sometimes masks and while that might be understandable, it is regrettable for we do not see folk as they truly are, even if they are scarred and not quite what we expected or hoped for.
The other point to be made is that sometimes we put a veil on the other person. We perceive them first as maybe separated, divorced, an amputee, impoverished or holding a different point of view to us. Sometimes sadly, we can’t see past those things and admire who it really is that is before us. We miss out on seeing someone quite beautiful and talented. We miss out on seeing an exquisite and adorable child… a child of God. And when we fail to see them as this child, it is like missing out on a spectacular sunset, a piece of art and possibly a life changing / enriching experience. Would that I had the courage to not only take off my own veils and masks but also to see others as they truly are.
“When did I stop wearing my veil?”
“When you stopped seeing it.”