Person of Interest.

I’ve seen a lot of cruelty in this world, recently. A lot of loss, pain, and just plain evil.
But for being part of a broken world,  mankind can be so rawly radiant.

Every so often when I turn to reply to a friend, I literally have to take a moment to catch my breath - they’re just so stunning. It’s like I’m seeing them for the first time.

Ecclesiastes 3:11a says, “He has made everything beautiful in its time” (NIV).

I think the texture of life is beautiful.

The other day, for a few minutes in time, I grew hyperaware of the people around me. Things began to jump out at me – movements and details I’d overlooked hundreds of times. Golden highlights in hair. A ballpoint pen twirling between deft fingers. Eyes darkening with sadness. Chipped fingernail polish. Loopy handwriting. A kaleidoscope of freckles splayed across a face. Untied shoelaces. The way fingertips compress against a clear glass of water. Eyebrows furrowing with question. A smile that blooms out of nowhere. Hair loosened from a braid. The way people look when they hear they are loved. 

It was a sensory overload.

…Sometimes I think we forget to really look at people.

As an actor, whole worlds open up to me when I honestly see my scene partner as interesting. I think life is like this, too. If we actively viewed everyone we met as a person of interest, I think everything would change – from our attitudes, to our actions, to our hearts.

I want to start truly seeing people. This is rarely easy for me, but I think it’s one of those things that grows easier with practice. A commonly heard expression in improvisation is, “Choose to care.” That’s one of the things I love about improv: nothing is unimportant. Everything that happens matters. Sometimes we just have to change our viewpoint to see how.

That’s the way I want to see people. I believe every person on this earth is invaluable. If they were absent, the world literally would not be the same place. I want to choose to care. I want to become a lifelong study of the art of Appreciating People.

Without wax,

Sarah.