Do you ever think someone is watching you?
Not in a sinister, voyeuristic sort of way but more like what would an independent observer see if they looked down (or up) at the world? At various junctures throughout my life, the thought of someone watching from above has popped into my head. I am not sure if it is driven by an intrinsic belief in a greater presence, that I had forgotten I have, or from growing up in a time where Orwell’s 1987 still lay ahead of us and Big Brother meant something other than aspiring influencers exposing themselves in a house on television.
I have had fleeting thoughts about an aerial view of shiny and cylindrical heads magically transformed by wand like objects and of “parents” and their pets connected by string as they walk.
Sitting in a restaurant in the late 1990’s, I remember looking at the rainbow nation diners surrounding me, wondering if my long deceased grandparents would recognise the beloved country they grew up in.
Would my father, who passed away pre pandemic, struggle to recognise us and the world he knew, through our masks and protective clothing?
Then there was this one time at band camp (really), when I turned away from my children on stage for a split second to look at the audience. The people watching through rectangular objects they held in their hand was a sight worthy of capture by my phone in mine. What would observers from another time or even another planet, make of the scene?
The I generation with their bent necks or best position selfie postures and pouting mouths would warrant pictures of their own on the continuum of evolution of human kind diagram.
Writing this piece has got me thinking about how we see things. More than the mechanical workings of the eye and other organs that produce sight, how the lenses we look through, the angles we view from and what we believe, influences what we see.
Over used expressions like “seeing the glass half empty or full” and “looking through rose tinted glasses” really play such a large part in influencing our perceptions of our lives and ultimately how we see ourselves.
Add a snapchat or Insta filter and your vision can really be blurred.
Sometimes you see can see clearly with your very own eyes but are blinded by a story, an explanation, or just what you want to believe. I suppose “seeing is believing” as someone once said.
More recently, I have also been thinking about what whoever is watching would say about their view of the world today. I think they would be shocked, stunned and saddened.
The familiar introductory notes of a song made famous by Bette Midler song are summoned from memory, as if on cue.
From a Distance
We all have enough
And no one is in need.
And there are no guns,
No bombs, and no disease
No hungry mouths to feed
From a distance we are instruments
Marching in a common band
Playing songs of hope
Playing songs of peace
They are the songs of every man
God is watching us
God is watching us
God is watching us
From a distance
And so, if I am being watched by God or whatever means the good (my favourite stolen definition of a power greater than ourselves) I will allow that thought to guide my actions as I plod, run or dance ahead on our earth. I want whoever is watching (including myself) to like what they see.
In My Head 