By Sister Mary Scholastica, O.C.D.
How intriguing. Hidden saints among us.
Have you heard the phrase “what you see is what you get”? This can be interpreted in a variety of ways. Let’s read it literally for the sake of this random musing.
What do you see, look for in yourself and in others? Do you see with a critical eye? Do you automatically see how someone does something “wrong”? Do you see with the eyes of compassion? Do you automatically presume negative intent? Do you automatically presume goodness?
What you see is what you get.
Little Lord Fauntleroy is a novel by Frances Hodgson Burnett, who is probably best known for her book, The Secret Garden. This little gem of a book, Little Lord Fauntleroy, reminds us of how one’s perspective in life colors and moves it in the direction that one sees it. This darling little boy, who is the epitome of goodness, kindness and generosity, changes the lives of all those around him, including his irate, ornery, disliked and unloved grandfather. The purity of his heart reflects in the purity of how he sees all things and people. Acts of selfishness on the part of the grandfather, seen through this pure lens become acts of loving kindness because that’s what Little Lord Fauntleroy sees. What you see is what you get. Others in the book see the elderly lord for who he is, a bitter, angry man and that’s what they get, a bitter angry man who treats them accordingly.
Little by little, transformation happens in the hearts of so many around him. The goodness, generosity and kindness that he “sees” becomes a lived reality.
So back to how this musing began – the hidden saints among us. Look around you. How often our perspectives skewed by the negativity we choose to see, cuts off our ability to see with the truest lens of goodness, generosity and kindness. What I consider an affront might be someone going out of their comfort zone to engage. What I consider a fault, might be a high level of virtue to another. What I see as a purposeful inconvenience might be that person’s way of trying to show love. The list goes on.
How will you choose to see this day?
Look for the hidden saints among us.
What you see is what you get. And what you get is a richer, blessed life that becomes a transformative force for all those around you. Truly, how intriguing!
