Photo Album
By Laura Mills
In the process of organizing recent vacation photos, I revisited and fondly remembered each moment. But of course, regardless of the feelings generated by the photos, my actual experience on the trip was far more spectacular. No matter how hard we try to capture our experiences on film, I don’t believe any photo is ever totally accurate. A stunning vista may awe and a world-famous site may impress, but as soon as we lift our cameras to our eyes we separate ourselves from the moment. Clicking the shutter captures merely a two-dimensional view; later, when we review the photo, something’s missing. What would happen if we put down the camera and experienced the world with our senses, as we were meant to experience it, in real time right in front of us as it happens?
On a day-to-day basis, yoga helps us put down our mental cameras, the ones through which we analyze days gone by and attempt to compose “perfect” snapshots. We’ve all heard it said that dwelling in the past removes us from the present; speaking for myself, I wonder how different my life would be if I always lived it looking forward, without reviewing the mental snapshots I’ve taken all along….
Maybe it’s time to close the album, once and for all, and keep my eyes directed in front of me.