Marcus Aurelius Quote

"Everything we hear is an opinion, not a fact. Everything we see is a perspective, not a truth.”

There are two sides to every story we hear. Newscasters are supposed to report the truth, but how many times have we learned later that facts had been embellished to make the story more exciting. Sometimes fiction can be more exciting to people than the truth. We live in a world where you must question the things you hear. 

Seeing: sometimes people believe so strongly about something they think what they see is the truth. It's kind of like a good magician. We can often be so biased to see what we WANT to see. Life experiences also give people different perspectives on how they view things. For example, in the recently circulated picture of a striped dress, some saw white and gold and others saw black and blue. Why is that?

Some things we hear our facts. For example, 2+2 is 4. But there are some things we take as a fact because someone has spent a great amount of time researching or convincing a majority to see it the way they do, which then makes the fact based on popular opinion.  

Not everything we hear is a fact, not everything we see is a truth; it’s an exaggeration. Absolute words like everything, nothing, always, never are usually incorrect because there is typically at least a small percent of the time that something can or can't happen. So it would be better to use a qualifier, like "most everything”. 

To me both statements are similar. What we are hearing is someone's interpretation of what is real to that individual, based on what they believe or know. What we see is based on how we compare what we are seeing to what we have seen or experienced before. 

MacKenzie Defined

      The doorbell rings and all three kids sprint to the door. "She's here Mama, she's here". They are dancing around. So excited as they open the door and let me inside. The three, Adeline, Keegan and Brennan; ages 7, 5 and 3, bring a smile to my face as they clamor for my attention, all talking at once. I'm their favorite babysitter.
      I love to babysit. Children fascinate me. I have watched these three grow and develop for several years. I have a keen interest in seeing how their little minds work. They are so easily entertained and they can entertain themselves with their own imaginations. I envy their innocence.
      Young children have so much free time. They have their whole life ahead of them. No worries, no stress, no to-do lists, no deadlines; just living to play, to learn, to grow, to be happy and to love.  As I watch them, I think about life's many stages. I picture a large round staircase with children at the bottom. They have no idea what lies ahead, what its like to be a teenager or an adult.  As children you have tantrums over your toys and not always getting your own way. You have  a meltdown when your mom won't let you have a Popsicle right before dinner. Their life is so different from mine.
      As you climb the stairs, you reach the teenage years. Life becomes real, you take on responsibilities, and often live through tragedies. You stress over tests, the mountains of homework, studying for the ACT, trying to get into college, and even the drama among your peer group. Pressure comes from peers, parents, teachers, coaches and counselors. You are constantly trying to do the "right" thing, hang with the "right" group of friends, wear the cutest clothes, get the most "likes" on Instagram, have the latest iPhone, get great grades, make the soccer team, have the most community service hours, get into a good college. The list goes on and on.
        You keep climbing and you become an adult. You finish college. You stress over deciding on a career and finding a job, marrying or not, paying your bills, etc. If you marry, do you want a family? How about a house? The list is endless.  Life constantly puts obstacles in our path, but somehow we make it through.
         Your climb continues as you become a senior. You are retired, maybe a grandparent. Once again you have more free time, you live more simply, you take time to smell the roses and watch the sunsets. You eat a cookie for breakfast if you want to.  You look back on all the things you stressed over and you laugh.  How little all the materialistic things matter in the big scheme of things.  What matters are the people you cherish, the love you've given and the happiness you've found. Life goes full circle. If you're lucky enough to have grandchildren, you may again be a babysitter to watch and adore another generation as they begin to climb the staircase of life.