perception noun uk /pəˈsep.ʃən/ us /pɚ-/ 1. a belief or opinion, often held by many people and based on how things seem; 2. someone's ability to notice and understand things that are not obvious to other people; 3. an awareness of things through the physical senses, esp. sight. ~Cambridge dictionary
It's a funny word. A word that can be taken in so many ways. A word many know about but few people think about. @Anutu came up with his first ever Challenge [Challenge] We Need To Talk! A #Challenge by @anutu. I was tagged in the challenge by Anutu, who I hold in highest regard. I was also hmmm...let's used the word ... threatened by 
In looking at this challenge, at this moment in my life, I have nothing coming into my head for many reasons. I read Anutu's post six times and hmmm..... yeah. I then read the definition of the word a few more billion times. What stood out to me was the second dohickey.
- 😇
- someone's ability to notice and understand things that are not obvious to other people;
The above definition spoke to me. It is me.
This, I'm going to call it a trait/gift, has been with me my whole life. Some of this trait was learned while growing up by necessity to survive. The rest comes naturally. It is in me. It makes up who I am in many ways. It is not always a gift to be able to notice and understand things that are not obvious to other people.
While very young it was hard to understand why others could not see what was, for me, the facts right in front of our faces. Why couldn't they see what I could see? Why did I have to explain to others what should have been obvious?
It was very frustrating. The frustration would then come across in my tone to the person I would have to explain things to.
Do you see the problems that can and did cause?
It is a trait you can learn to ignore if you want to. I spent part of my life doing just that. Why get others upset telling them something that, in my mind, should have been obvious to them?
You grow older. You start to realize how unique we all are. How all of us are given gifts to survive in life but not all are given the same gifts for a good reason. No one, and I mean no one, can know everything.
We all have our part to play in this world, our largest village, our home. You can then break it down to smaller villages like your family, Steem(it), your workplace and so on. If everyone would use the gifts/traits they have received in life, the village would run smoothly.
In this day and age so many of us move away from family, live alone in an apartment or house and never talk to neighbors, making your gift lost to the world. On the same note, so many people feel they have to conform to what is considered normal that they hide their unique gifts. Once again what is needed in this world is lost.
Without others that are unique around you or them hiding their gift, the world spins off kilter. It takes age, confidence and a lot of soul searching to be strong enough to not care what others think of you. Once you get to that point in your life you feel okay with sharing your true self with everyone. Not an easy task but one that is necessary to the world.
Steem(it) works so well as something community based because there are more people here that have excepted the fact they are not normal. They, in talking through type and voice on Discord, realized in this place called Steem(it), being different is the NORM!!
If you are lucky enough to get into a community, made for the right reasons, you are excepted for your gifts. Wanted for those same gifts that you had to hide from the outside world most of your life.
Steem(it) has been known and called a social experiment. I don't care if it is or not. What I do care about is, it is a place I can be me. A place I don't have to hide my special traits. A place I am surrounded by people that are not afraid to show their special traits. This Village works, on most levels, better than any I have seen.
Photos found here
@enginewitty!