Real Women ~ Real Answers: Are You Following An Illusion?

ARE YOU FOLLOWING AN ILLUSION?

My Monday commenced with a brisk early walk under a waning moonlit canopy of black velvet sprinkled with innumerable stars that glistened as diamonds in the sky.

As I continued on my way, I heard a strange noise behind me.  It took me a couple of minutes to discern that it was the tinkling of a bell.  In the pitch darkness, I attempted to locate the sound since it was quite foreign and intriguing so early in the morning.

I turned around several times trying to determine the source to no avail.  Suddenly, I spotted an object behind me and to my right.  When pivoting to the side, what to my wondering eyes did appear, but a feline sporting a bell tied around its neck!  It lunged toward me, then backed off, and continued this pattern for a short while.

Considering that cats are often independent creatures and not all of them happen to be friendly to strangers, I did think it a tad strange that this particular one was following me so closely.  Suddenly, the reason became obvious.

The bottom of my walking stick must have resembled a mouse, of sorts, to this cat!  Ergo, perhaps it thought it might be able to score an early breakfast.  Actually, since I am no Felis catus expert, I am only conjecturing as to what might have been flitting through the cat’s mind.  My assumption is based upon its actions at the time.

Thank you for granting me some grace in the area of artistic design.  Obviously, from the picture above, my talents lie elsewhere.  Some days, it seems as though I am still looking for them . . .  But, I am quite confident that you can at least get the gist of my story.  I am quite elated, however, because I have progressed from simple stick figures to some pictures that closely resemble a cat and a mouse.

The kitty-kitty continued to follow me for the next several minutes and departed as abruptly as it had appeared.

There are times when nature can be a valuable teacher, and I deem this one no exception.  It begs the question, “Are you following an illusion?”

Just exactly what is an illusion?  It is something that is or is likely to be wrongly perceived or interpreted by the senses.  It is also a deceptive appearance or impression, false idea or belief.  Since we have five senses, this increases the probability of wrong perceptions, deceptions, and false beliefs.

In my real life happening, the cat thought it was following a mouse or other object in which it was keenly interested.  It’s obvious that when it got close enough to the bottom end of my walking stick, it realized it was not a standard menu item, and lost interest.  But from a distance, the constant movement of the black padded object moving along the asphalt might have appeared to be a mouse or edible object.

Without getting too far off in the weeds with my little story, cats have a wider field view of 200 degrees compared to that of a human’s 180 degree view.  Their eyes have six to eight times more rod cells which are more sensitive to low light which help them to sense motion in the dark.  Also, a cat’s elliptical eye shape and larger corneas and tapetum help to garner more light.  Humans have the eye edge in the areas of the retina, motion detection in light, eye cones, etc.  The creator’s design is perfect for each species.

There are times in life when not everything is at it appears.  It’s when we get up real close and personal, so to speak, and do some examining and investigating of our own, that we can make a correct judgment.  Sometimes this requires removing the “rose colored glasses” as those have a real tendency to distort reality.

This little Monday morning experience has stirred my spirit to examine the subject of illusions in my own world.  There is one area, however, that is of utmost importance which is the spiritual one.  In the 24th chapter of Matthew, Jesus’ disciples came to him privately inquiring as to the signs of the times.  Verse 4 of that chapter reads, “And Jesus answered and said to them [the disciples], ‘Take heed that no one deceives you.’”

I would encourage you to study the Bible from Genesis to Revelation to arm yourself with the whole counsel of God.  Truth can and will defend itself.  Within the pages of the most important book ever written, we can discern truth from falsehood and empower ourselves as women to fulfill the entirety of what God has called us to be and to do.  As we walk out our lives, I am beyond confident that all of us can hear those “warning” bells when applicable.

Happy Reading as you discern those illusions in your life!

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