On Perspective

How to See the World Through a Different Lens

I’m in Iceland this week with a couple of friends I’ve been tight with since fifth grade. On Thursday, we went to the Myrdalsjokull glacier, where the world turned black and white—with hints of blue. One of my friends commented that we’d stepped into an Ansel Adams painting.

Interesting timing because this week (episode drops Monday 3-24) on the Write-minded podcast, Lidia Yuknavitch is our guest, and we spend time talking about perspective and her new book, Reading the Waves. She asks in the interview: “Why don’t we take another look at our own story experiences? Why do we hold onto them so tightly? Is there a way . . . to stand in a different place, or come from a different vantage point, or ask different questions?”

Iceland, land of fire and ice, forces different perspectives. Here, nature rules and humans simply grace the space she holds. This is a perspective I needed to see. Away from the rush/stress/press/push/pull intensity of my daily life, a style of living cultivated and perfected in the U.S. that seems anathema to the Icelandic way.

It’s hard to be here and not ask the questions: “Is there a way to stand in a different place, or come from a different vantage point, or ask different questions?”

Yes, there always is—and a different setting certainly helps.

Here’s a series from Myrdalsjokull: