There was time when I could sit for hours in B&N studying diligently...writing Latin curriculum or literature guides, or preparing a week's worth of lessons on Genesis...all the while, completely oblivious to the folks around me. An intense focus resulted in tunnel vision. I had a purpose...and NOTHING could distract me from it.
Not so anymore. Lately, when I go to study or write, I find myself people-watching or eavesdropping on nearby conversations.
One man sat alone typing furiously for two hours with only his index fingers! I was mesmerized by the speed and agility he displayed...and his ability to block out the rest of the world as he focused on the task at hand.
An elderly gentleman, armed with coke-bottle glasses - and a hand-held magnifying glass to boot - voraciously devoured page after page of the volumes stacked on his table. He was oddly methodical. Open the book to the middle, skip randomly from right to left, left to right, moving both forward and backward through the pages until he was satisfied, at which point he would move on to the next book.
A crowd of twenty-somethings sat listening as one gal shared the experience of her first CT scan. She had changed into her hospital gown and been bustled into a small room and told to wait. While waiting, she began to hear instructions such as, "Hold your breath...be still...OK good." "Now, turn your left foot outward...hold still...good, good." She very cooperatively followed these instructions for about 5 minutes before she realized the voice was coming through the wall from the REAL testing room and the instructions were not intended for her at all! I think she figured out I was listening in when I laughed harder than her friends did, but it sounded just like something I would do!
My conclusion is that focus, study and intensity are highly overrated and that it's much more entertaining to show up without an agenda and just enjoy the diversity of personalities that gather in our public places.
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