This short film by filmmaker and photographer Hailey Bartholomew teaches us that what we see is a matter of perception. Whatever we look for, is what we see.
If we want to look for heart shaped rocks on the beach, that is what we will find. Hailey, together with her family and friends found 342 heart shaped rocks in just three weeks after moving to the beach.
This film, Finding Love, was made on an iPhone and edited with iMovie.
A film by Hailey Bartholomew.
Zen Master Thich Nhat Hanh is always teaching us about our perceptions. Much of the time, these can be wrong, and we don’t even know it!
The main example that he and the Buddha refer to is the story of The Snake and the Rope.
Suppose we are walking down a country road at night. We look down at the ground and suddenly we see a snake and become frightened. Then we turn our flashlight on it. We look again and we see that there is only a rope, not a snake. The rope was there all along, never a snake, but the rope appeared to us to be a snake because our sight was obscured by the darkness, because we did not focus our light on it. As a result of seeing a snake we became filled with fear and worry. When we found that it was only a rope, the appearance of the snake dissolved.
It is our wrong perception of the rope that causes us to get frightened and stressed out. Once we perceive it correctly, our fear and stress are immediately reduced.
Can you think of an example in your life where your wrong perception caused you stress? Please share you experience.
Have you ever found heart shaped rocks on the beach? If you do, you can send a picture of them to Hailey Bartholomew. You’ll find her email address at the end of the movie.
