6 OR 9

In a Machine Design class, the topic was pretty simple and almost everyone understood the basics so the Professor decided to throw in the ball and see who really got it. The question was "Who can tell us the working essence of machines?" A student stood up and began by explaining the fulcrum, load, effort and the whole making work easy concept of machine design, the whole class was impressed with his elaborate and intelligent answer but the Professor seem not satisfied so he asked for another opinion, a second student stood up and said "machines are designed to substitute manual labor by reducing the time and energy that manual labor consumes and to produce better and greater efficiency at the end of the work process". The Professor was highly impressed and asked the class to applaud the second student to which the first student screamed "but we are saying the same thing Sir" to which the lecturer replied "yes I know but it sounds better and more understandable the way he explained it".

We all often have the same elements and factors to look at but because we have different angles and perspectives, we always come out with different interpretations to the same thing with the high expectation that our own opinion or perspective is the right on and because it is not a matter of right or wrong (but of good-better-best), we often get offended when our opinion is bested by that of others. One of my best shows on Food Network is 'Chopped', where all the contestants are given the same ingredients and same time to come up with a dish (appetizer, entree and dessert), I watch in awe as some grind, blend, fry, cook, bake and transform the common things I never thought was possible into beautifully looking dishes (sometimes I wish I was on the panel of judges, so I can taste them all). When the judges start to give their expert opinions, I hear things like "you should have boiled it for a minute more" or "I like what you did with this or that, I could hardly feel the kale or parsnips and you should have added that". At the end, you see same ingredients producing different looks, tastes and getting different criticism based on either the recipe in which it was used, the physical state in which it was left/subjected or the timing required to make it what it is. The screening process happens after every course with a contestant eliminated after each stage, the last chef remaining becomes the winner.

So is life generally, we all have the same time, ingredients, kitchen and even judges, (but we are not in any competition), how we present our dishes will definitely vary because we are all coming from different schools of culinary, we can never see things exactly from the same perspectives, we cannot all blend out oranges, slice our onions in same pattern or even fry our eggs the same way but that does not make either the chef or the ingredients wrong (even though some chefs ruin the dish). Perspective and opinions will always vary based on our stand point, but whether you are seeing the figure on the floor as six or nine, it does not change the fact that there is a figure there and that you are right, just not standing on the other side.

We have to start accepting the singular fact that we are all looking at the same thing, just from different perspectives but if we can't then I suggest we remain thankful that we can even see the figure in the first place.
Photo Credit: Google Images