Every now and then something happens that causes you to see the world anew. Sometimes the paradigm shift is so profound it sticks, and you’re never the same again… other times, you have a moment where your brain goes “wow – how interesting – who knew!?” and then it flips back into seeing the same old same old.
There are paradigm shifts in your perspective that occur on a deep philosophical level, but there are also more playful ones associated with optical illusions. The ‘Duck-Rabbit’ image is one such example: is this a picture of a duck or a bunny:
[Image source: Fun with Ambiguous Images – Art of Play]
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The answer is: it’s both a duck AND a bunny – it’s a buck-dunny!! You can see the left-facing duck’s beak on the left-hand side of the picture… but then again… those could also be the ears of a right-facing bunny…
I always remember the profound sense of “whaaaat?!” that occurred in my brain many years ago when someone pointed out that the courier company FedEx had an arrow in their logo (I exaggerated it in green below). By using ‘negative space’ they created an elegant and oh-so-clever design solution for a logistics company that moves goods from here to there:
[Image source: Google & my alteration of it]
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The reason I’m telling you all of this, is I had a similar epiphany when someone showed me where the ‘bird’ in a Bird of Paradise (‘Strelitzia reginae’) plant was.
Looking at the free Pexels image I used for the blog header, I had always assumed that the ‘bird’ was the head of a large crane, complete with an orange crown. But the person I was listening to was adamant it was a whole bird, shaped like a small hummingbird with fluttering wings, that gave the plant its name. Here’s my crude markup of the image to explain:
[Image source: Pexels & me]
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Now I see the hummingbird, I can’t un-see it. It’s like a lightbulb goes off in your head, creating an “ah ha” or “eureka” moment.
BUT
I’m not convinced.
Not that you can’t see a hummingbird in the flower – you absolutely can – I’m just not convinced that’s the bird that was behind the name. The reason is, ‘reginae’ means queen, and was apparently part of the name because of a crane’s crown-like features. Wikipedia even notes the plant is often called a “crane flower”.
OK, so you say ‘tom-art-oh’ and I say ‘tom-aye-toe’.
Big deal.
EXCEPT
If you’re adamant that the bird of paradise is shaped off a hummingbird, and I’m convinced it’s the head of a crane – there is a potential for debate.
If we’re both super-passionate about our opinions, then there is the potential that the debate escalates into a dispute. Whichever choice we go with, someone is going to feel cheated and frustrated.
Similarly:
There is always a risk that the same sort of divisive polar-thinking can happen in health-care.
Perhaps you’re keen to try a non-medicinal approach to healing, but your doctor is adamant tablets are the best solution. Maybe one of your medical team is convinced you need surgery, whilst another is absolutely against it.
I’ve listened to podcasts where a caller has described how their pillow effects their sleep and posture and gives them migraines, only to be shut down (aggressively) by the host who was scathing of any solution other than supplements…
For me, my neurologist suggested I try HIIT (High-Intensity Interval Training) to reduce my migraines, but everything in my being was screaming at me NOT to run and rush and bounce around (at that time). When a Yin Yoga teacher suggested that sort of excessive motion might trigger my nervous system into a ‘fight and flight’ response (exactly where I didn’t need to be anymore), I felt vindicated that I had heard and respected the wisdom of my body.
[But, if I’m honest, there have been plenty of other times when my reluctance to follow advice has been more to do with laziness, cost, or fear…]
I guess what I’m trying to say is that the world feels quite divisive at the moment – everyone is becoming increasingly opinionated, and those opinions seem to be becoming more and more polarized. If you’re like me, a regular in-betweener and fence-sitter, then the noise can seem excessively loud and distressing.
When it comes to subjects like war, politics, religion, gender and race-rights, staking a place on your hill to defend makes complete sense – you’re passionate about perceived injustices – fair call.
When it comes to health-related issues, however, I would caution you against adopting a fixed, black and white way of thinking… healing is going to take a team-approach, and a team of people is likely to have diverging suggestions.
It can feel complicated and confusing, I know, but you don’t have to pick a lane and stick in it for ever: stay open-minded and consider all your options before you choose which way you’ll go.
And then, even AFTER you’ve chosen your way to proceed, be open-minded enough to accept when it might not be working and re-shuffle your options over and over until you find a way that works best for you.
Crane, hummingbird or crummingbird, the Strelitzia Reginae is a beautiful plant, whichever way you look at it.
Healing matters – so keep floating, keep flying, keep adjusting your perspective and stay curious.
Take care taking care, Linda x
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[PS – Disclaimer – please remember that whilst I am now a doctor (read more here) – I am NOT a medical doctor – my examples are for illustrative purposes only – be sure to speak to your own team of healthcare professionals when deciding how best to proceed on your healing journey.]
PPS – I recently overheard another epiphany moment that’s similar to the ‘tom-art-oh’ / ‘tom-aye-toe’ thing… “why do we say the G in LONGEVITY twice?”
PPPS – on a similar but different note to visual cleverness, shout out to my blog-buddy on Scottie’s Playtime – Come see what I share who embraces and articulates my love of pom-pom support with a series of keyboard presses that really rocks my happy little world:
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The Mindful Migraine 
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