There Is No Such Thing as Knowledge at First Sight

It is November. Maybe I should have written that sentence with a question mark at the end. It is November? I am simply not sure where time goes. This year, my first year of ‘retirement’, has seemed to go even faster than the whirlwind years of meetings, reporting, traveling… and many more meetings. For me, and many others, retirement is a chance to do something else, to chase a dream. Perhaps that is why it seems to go even faster, sometimes I wonder whether I am dreaming or awake. Pinch me!

This blog entry shares the title of chapter two of Looking Up- which if you are here, I am sure you know that is my book set to be released in February 2020 (still good form to say it, and again, pinch me!). On the surface, we can all agree that the statement, “There is no such thing as knowledge at first sight,” is rather obvious. But let’s go deeper than the surface.

Do you believe in love at first sight? It is a beautiful notion. If we all agree that you can’t know much about a person from first sight, then how can we simultaneously believe that you can love them from first sight? Perhaps that kind of love is just kismet and doesn’t require actual knowledge. I am truly interested in your thoughts on this one. Leave a comment for all of us to consider if you have ideas!

Often, I feel like a nameless celebrity- everyone notices me, some people openly gawk, but nobody approaches me for my autograph. That is okay by me, I am still working on perfecting my John Hancock. I am going for something flamboyant but subtle… wish me luck. You know, I see these onlookers, and they do not bother me. I honestly understand their curiosity, especially the reaction of children likely looking at a little person for the first time. That was me, believe it or not, at age 12, when for the first time I met another little person. Many times, I believed I was alone, but as it turns out, Gary lived only a ten-minute drive from me. Meeting him was a very surreal experience and at the time, elicited feelings of ambivalence. I now had proof that I was not the only little person but meeting just one other after 12 years somehow made my world feel even smaller. And then, soon after, it opened.

My mother learned about the Little People of America, or LPA, from a recent issue of Reader’s Digest just before we met Gary (this was 1978, moms learned a lot from Reader’s Digest). As it turns out, there was a chapter within a few hours drive and we could attend a meeting in just a few weeks. My first experience with an LPA meeting was rocky, but every first is rocky when you are 12 years old, right? It took me some time to process my feelings about belonging to a group of people like me, when I just recently realized that there were definitely more people like me. Suddenly, there were so many people like me that we had an association! But I knew, resolutely, that it felt good to stand in a room and just… be. I didn’t stand out, I didn’t disappear, I was just… Michele, another member of the meeting. Joining the LPA was a turning point in my life, and I am still so grateful for the relationships I have built within that community.

While I highly recommend that you have places of safe harbor where you can feel genuinely ‘you’ with like people, I also caution it. Being in a setting with people like you can be very good for your soul, it can give you stability and reinforce your confidence. However, focusing too much on this and living in a bubble with only like-minded people can also make you singular. I also recommend that you strike a balance by exposing yourself to people that are different from you. These are the people that will challenge your understanding of the world and expand your heart and mind in ways you didn’t know possible.

I want to close out this post by challenging you. A friend once told me, “Every time you meet someone, you leave them a little better off or a little worse off.” As people pass through your life- in the hall, at a store, on the street- leave them a little better off. Share a smile, a nod, a hello- show them you are Looking Up to them. I hope this will be good for your heart! With Love, Michele