Seeing Things Differently

I moved up in the company today... literally. I went from the second floor to the sixth floor. It was a reorganization kind of thing; no promotion, just a new location. However, I do enjoy the view from up where I sit now. Like being able to see four different states from atop the Sears Tower in Chicago, I can see more than fourteen different cities from my new vantage point. Since I live so close to work, I can even see the rooftops of the houses in my neighborhood above the trees.

It always amazes me just how many trees you see when looking down from above. At ground level I notice more of the concrete and buildings that are all around me than I do the trees. For example, on my way to work I travel from my driveway onto a street and down a road to a highway eventually turning through an intersection to reach a large parking lot. Paying attention to where I drive forces me to survey plenty of pavement during my trip. A little higher up, though, changes the scene completely. Looking down at my route to work I now see the roads I traverse lined by forests of trees on either side. As I follow the path with my eyes, limbs and branches obscure the view of any asphalt or markings on the roadways as they curve and turn into areas abundantly covered in green. The view suddenly looks more like a great expanse of trees cut by small ribbons of roadways. What once seemed mostly grey now appears overly green. Funny how your point of view changes your perspective.

The expectations for my dad's treatment of cancer similarly depend on one's viewpoint because there is both a pragmatic and a hopeful way of looking at the situation. The road to survival will not be easy nor pleasant. Treating cancer with chemotherapy and radiation is a painful and arduous procedure. It's hard to see past the hardships associated with treating the cancer except to realize that the treatment is a means to an end. Even so, the end result remains uncertain without any guarantees of completing the journey.

From a different perspective springs the hope of a successful treatment: the possibility that all this struggle will not have been in vain. There is the belief that with treatment dad stands a good chance of being cured of this cancer. Ultimately, the amount of hope it takes to commit to the process of treatment against great odds then depends on how well one can see the forest for the trees.

Seeing things differently, I pray dad has the hope to go forward and the strength to carry through.