The Long and Short Views of Life

Almost on a whim, my wife and I decided to drive up to the Blue Ridge Parkway and find a location to view the Comet NEOWISE. She put together a picnic dinner while I scoped out possible viewing locations on the internet. We wanted a northwest valley view. Craggy Gardens overlook seemed to be the perfect spot.

We headed out about six p.m. and got to the overlook shortly after nine. I’m not sure why I thought I’d be the only one thinking this was a good idea.  Other viewers already on-site had staked their spots. Some had chairs, some stood behind tripods, and some relaxed on a rock wall. We found a spot, set up the camera, donned our binoculars, and waited. Finally, around 9:45, we spotted it.

Here are a few facts about the comet. NEOWISE is about three miles in diameter, currently travels around 40 miles per second and is about 70 million miles from Earth.¹ The comet image in today’s post was taken with my lens’s shutter open for 25 seconds. The streak just to the right of NEOWISE is a falling star (meteor burning as it hits Earth’s atmosphere) captured during the 25 seconds.

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That night, my focus on the expanse and celestial objects I could barely see, along with a healthy dose of social-distancing protocols, led me to perceive the experience as large and eternal.

The next morning my wife and I headed out to perform our daily garden maintenance. While there, our new neighbor came out and we talked across the fence. As we chatted, a dragonfly landed on one of my tomato stakes. I watched him (or her) for a while and since he didn’t appear in a hurry to leave, I ran inside and grabbed my camera.

In contrast to the comet photo, the dragonfly photo was taken with my lens’s shutter open for only 1/250 of a second. I found it interesting that almost all of a dragonfly’s head is eye, giving them vision of almost every angle except right behind them.² The detail I saw on the dragonfly reflected the closeness of our conversation with our neighbor. We talked of family, interests, joys, and disappointments.

As soon as I walked back into the house, it hit me that my two photo shoots suggested long and short views of life.

The long view reflects your legacy. What are you doing now that affects the long-term outcome of someone? Are you sharing the love of Jesus in a way that would cause them to want more of Him or less? Does your life point to Jesus or you? Are you praying for others to experience the grace of the Father?

Those actions can affect not only someone today, but in turn, generations to come.

Listen to the words of Psalm 78 as the writer tells why God gave Jacob a testimony.

“That the generation to come might know, even the children yet to be born, That they may arise and tell them to their children, That they should put their confidence in God and not forget the works of God, But keep His commandments.” (Psalm 78:6-7, NASB)

The short view reflects immediacy. What are you doing now that impacts the life of someone today? You could ask some of the same questions asked about the long view. In addition, are you bringing someone joy? Do you seek to meet a need? Are you honoring  others?

I love Paul’s advice in Galatians.

“Bear one another’s burdens, and thereby fulfill the law of Christ.” (Galatians 6:2, NASB)

I am more often a long view person. How about you? Are you a natural long view or short view person? You can be both or neither I suppose.

¹https://www.space.com/comet-neowise-strange-facts.html

²https://www.smithsonianmag.com/science-nature/14-fun-facts-about-dragonflies-96882693/