You’ve heard of rose-colored glasses. They tint everything with a rosy glow so that it all looks positive and upbeat. I’m all for it other than the fact that it’s a false experience of reality and it hides as much as it enhances. Personally I’d rather have the technicolor truth in all its gritty gloriousness than an artificially colored version. The artificial coloring not only softens the darks, but dulls the brights and can cause us to not see the danger until it’s too late to react or be proactive.
What we don’t hear about too often are the fear goggles. The dark colored glasses which darken everything slightly so that we see things as coming from a negative slant. This has the positive effect of us being able to see most things that might negatively impact us and makes anything positive or uplifting a welcome surprise and a plus. So yay! It’s somewhat like the pessimistic perspective on things. They don’t have high expectations and they are always prepared for the worst so they are regularly positively surprised by things. Well, not really because no matter what happens to them they take the pessimistic outlook and see hidden negatives in them which helps to have everything fit into a pessimistic world view.
People who wear fear goggles have just as much of an artificial perspective as those wearing rose-colored glasses. They expect to have to defend themselves against a world that is out to get them so they interact with the world from a defensive posture. All the happiness has a tinge of darkness and “what if” over it. All the shadows are deepened to darkness and what is neutral becomes a possible threat. This perspective is often seen as preparedness or being realistic or logical but in reality is a reaction. It’s like putting a film of fear of everything and calling it a positive spin. In reality its a cheat because it keeps us from experiencing the joys and happiness and the goodness of life while focusing on what could happen and emphasizing negative things when they do.
Protective eyewear is a good thing and sometimes necessary. But we should be aware when we’re wearing it and what effect it has. If you wear something all the time you become habituated to it and begin to think that’s how things are in reality. It’s not. Take the lenses off your eyes and see things in a whole new light.
