A Kaleidoscope is an amazing thing; using light, shape, colour and mirrors to create unique beautiful patterns

Do you remember the first time using a Kaleidoscope? Putting the eye-piece to your eye, pointing it to the light and turning the device to make such amazing patterns. As one pattern vanishes another appears, an endless array of mesmerising patterns.

Have you tried to share what you see with a friend? I bet it’s difficult, as you see it only takes a small bump and that pattern is lost never to return (Or should we say the odds so low we’re unlikely to ever see it again). What you saw is never quite the same as what your friend does.

Viewing life can often be like this. Much is going on in life and all facets of it. These aspects of life appear in front of us like the small pieces of glass and colour of the Kaleidoscope.

Of course, we see life one Kaleidoscope pattern at a time, while we may try to understand others (empathy), do we every truly see the pattern that the other person sees? Nope.

Is there a lost hope in empathy? No, we get closer and closer to each, more and more understanding through it. What it does mean though is that we can never see things 100% the same way, what could this mean? Does this mean we need to give each other more ‘rope’, more time, more love, less judgement, more grace?