I was looking to the future, but I couldn’t see what was in front of my face. I was thinking about the what ifs without living in the present reality. I was seeing opportunities today, but my vision was clouded by tomorrow’s worries.
I have done this so many times, whether in deciding about college, planning for something, or even thinking through unlikely situations. I’m sure many of you can relate to this feeling. How often have you felt so concerned about things to come that you forget to notice the ones that are happening right now?
Hellen Keller once said, “The only thing worse than being blind is having sight but no vision.” Similarly, C.S. Lewis quipped, “To ‘see through’ all things is the same as not to see.” We love to use our sight to pick apart ideas, experiences, and worries, analyzing and dissecting them fully.
And this is what it means to have sight without vision. As humans, we should be guided by our vision, our hope. But far too often, we let ourselves focus on facts and worry instead of purpose and meaning. We have an understanding of our circumstances, but we don’t apply that knowledge in a way that will benefit ourselves or those around us. Thus, we allow our sight to overwhelm our vision, and in doing so we forget what it means to live. Sight without vision is paralyzing, causing us to constantly live in fear of the things we don’t see and only believe the things we do.
Of course, when we are blessed with the sight to understand our circumstances, we should use it. However, it is important that we don’t dwell on things that are out of our control. Let vision, not sight, drive your plans and motivate your decisions.
Note: this post was also used as a scholarship entry for www.marveloptics.com.
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