Thoughts on Subtlety

Questions show the mind’s range, and answers, its subtlety.  Joseph Joubert

This morning, I had a sudden realization about subtlety.  I’d overheard a conversation between two people who were discussing a problem.  The first person speculated on several possibilities for the cause of the problem; the second dismissed the idea that there was even a problem at all.

I got to thinking about this difference in perspective:  was there truly no problem, as the second person maintained, or was the first person actually more observant and able to see the tiny beginnings of a shift?

There is a fine line, I believe, between noticing subtle shades and creating mountains out of molehills.  But how can we know the difference?  After all, perception is reality, and the observer does indeed change the nature of the observed.  Dilemma. . . .

As with most things in life, the answer, most likely, is to stick to a middle ground, to find some balance between obtuse and acute.  My goal today is to be the calmly flowing river between the dripping faucet and the raging waterfall.