My mom had been to the rehab center six times already and never noticed the wall-sized, beautiful tank with exotic fish just opposite the main entrance. My nine year old nephew ran right toward it the first time he walked in the door.
I didn’t notice the raised lip on the sewer cover, yet it caused frustration for the visually impaired stranger who needed help around it.
We may be looking at the exact same spot, but we are not seeing the same thing.
And that can be influenced by age, status, gender, experience, immediate needs, culture and a multitude of factors.
Perceptions and meanings of different colors, what is considered foreground and background, what blends into the horizon or is distinct from it, can all vary not objectively, but subjectively.
Try an experiment and ask the person next to you to look the same direction as you and ask them to name three things that stand out most to them. Are they the same ones you picked? What does that tell you about your own perceptions of life?
