When we were young, we all played with kaleidoscopes.
Back then, we thought it was magic. It was clearly just a humble paper tube, yet as soon as you brought it close to your eye, you could see a myriad of blossoming flowers and glittering stars. Even more magical was that the patterns never repeated; every gaze revealed a new world.
As we grow up, we get used to viewing the world as fixed, hard, and sometimes even gray. We stare blankly at the difficulties before us, assuming that they represent the whole truth of life.
But perhaps, we have all forgotten the simplest secret.
The world is a kaleidoscope, and you remain that child who looks through the light and endows it with meaning.
So-called “Reality” is Merely Fragments Waiting to be Illuminated
If you have ever disassembled a kaleidoscope, you might have been sorely disappointed.
There are no exquisite paintings inside, only a few pieces of cheap colored glass, some plastic beads, and perhaps even some trivial odds and ends. They are piled together in a chaotic heap, with no aesthetic beauty to speak of.
This is the “raw material” of life.
In this world, we will all encounter those few “shards of glass”: a failed exam, a relationship that fizzled out, an unsatisfying job, a sudden accident…
If you simply leave the kaleidoscope on the table and look at those scattered fragments from a distance, you will feel that life is a mess. You might point at those shards and say, “Look, this is my broken life.”
However, the mystery of the kaleidoscope lies in refraction, and in light.
When you pick it up and use the prism to observe with awareness, those originally messy fragments are instantly refracted into symmetrical, harmonious, and brilliant patterns. The fragments haven’t changed, the world hasn’t changed; what has changed is your gaze.
Don’t Forget, You Decide Where to Look
Many people feel pain in life because they treat themselves as the “shards” inside the kaleidoscope, allowing fate to shake them around until they are battered and bruised.
Or, they see themselves as passive “victims,” staring at the terrifying or sorrowful images before them, frozen in place, trying to cover their eyes with their hands or desperately wanting to dig the shards out.
But please remember, you are the observer holding the tube, deciding the perspective.
The most fascinating thing about a kaleidoscope is not what it presents, but how you see it.
When you see a pattern you don’t like, you don’t need to struggle to smash the kaleidoscope, nor do you need to anxiously feel you must immediately do something earth-shattering to change the status quo.
You only need to perform a tiny action: Adjust your thoughts.
- Frustrated at work? This is a gray pattern before your eyes. Try to be aware: perhaps this isn’t a dead end, but a reminder to stop and re-evaluate your direction, or a signal from within calling for rest.
- Heartbroken? This is a broken pattern before your eyes. Try to accept this brokenness: see the existence of sadness, and see that this is the moment for you to learn how to be with yourself.
“Awareness” is your deepest interaction with the world.
Even the slightest shift in your mindset can turn a sharp triangle into a soft circle, or turn oppressive black into a background that accentuates the light.
Your reality shifts with your state of mind. You cannot decide whether the tube contains red glass or blue beads, but you can decide what mentality you use to accept them, thereby deciding whether you see a disaster or a cleansing of the soul.
Enjoy the Flow of “Impermanence”
Since it is a kaleidoscope, it means nothing is eternally fixed.
Sometimes, we see a breathtakingly beautiful pattern, so we hold our breath, trying to seize the moment, terrified of ruining this beauty. We become anxious about gain and loss, fearing the passing of the next second.
Sometimes, we see a gloomy pattern, and we fall into despair, feeling that our lives are frozen here forever.
Go be that curious child.
When children look at a kaleidoscope, they don’t cry because a pattern disappears, nor do they fear because a pattern looks grotesque. They are full of curiosity, watching the light and shadow flow, allowing everything to happen.
- When the pattern is brilliant and harmonious, there is no need to try and grasp it; just be fully present, watching how the light and shadow weave together in this moment.
- When the pattern is messy and gloomy, there is no need to rush to resist; just keep breathing, allow them to present themselves as they are, and witness a different arrangement of the fragments.
Conclusion
Dear friend, if you feel the world right now is dark and lightless, or chaotic and messy, please stop first and take a deep breath.
No one is pressing your head against a miserable picture and forcing you to watch. You are the one holding this kaleidoscope.
Don’t rush to act, don’t rush to struggle. First, try to move your thoughts, change your angle to see.
The world is a kaleidoscope, and you are the child who endows it with light.
Look, as long as you are willing to be aware, new flowers are blooming again.