When we were living in our last house, I had created a monster of a garden on the face of a hill that sat in front of our house. Maneuvering across that hill to weed and pamper the perennials I’d planted over several years, was quite a fete – one that would be out of the question now. There were times that I felt my neighbors’ eyes focused on me as I traversed the hill and would often lose my footing and sometimes ended up rolling down that embankment. It was as if the neighbors were waiting for something disastrous to happen to me, or like judges at the Olympics, they were holding up score cards to indicate my agility.

Well, those days are long gone. I still have a garden, but there’s no chance of rolling down the hill. Now I’m just lucky I can stand up after sitting down for so long. Yesterday I began a series on looking out of our windows. My last sentence referred to our point of view. If you are the one being observed through a window, your point of view is going to change quite a bit by the situation. Maybe you’re not too concerned about what people think about you or what you’re doing, but the imagination of the viewer can certainly create interesting stories.

In 1954, James Stewart appeared in an Alfred Hitchcock movie called, “Rear Window.” He was temporarily disabled and forced to stay in his apartment in a wheelchair while he recovered. In the process, he became engrossed in the view from his window. He even named some of his neighbors for what they represented to him. The opera singer, the newlyweds, Miss Lonely Hearts, the couple on the fire escape and the composer. Oh, yes there was the little white dog too. He was privy to all their activities from the view he observed each day. As the story progressed, there was one neighbor that caused him great concern. He believed that the man had done something horrible to his wife and was about to dispose of her body. Stewart even convinced his housekeeper and his girlfriend that there as something fishy going on. Binoculars weren’t sufficient, so he resorted to using the telescopic lens on his camera to get a closer look.

Most of the things we see from our side of the window is totally innocent and without much fanfare, but what happens within our imagination can muster up the darkest thoughts. Even though we have no evidence, our brains can conjure up stories that have no basis in truth. So, what’s your point of view? Are you on the inside looking out or on the outside looking in? Are you using this time to reflect on your own life or putting your imagination to work? One thing about windows is that not only are you getting and outside view, but the reflection you see is showing you who you really are.

“Be sober-minded; be watchful. Your adversary the devil prowls around like a roaring lion, seeking someone to devour.” 1 Peter 5:8