The Full-Color Vision Can Take Some Time

By Christine Murray

Earlier this summer, during one of my usual walks, a beautiful flowering tree along my path caught my eye. Its blossoms were an eye-catching white-cream color, and I stopped to take a picture so I could continue to admire its beauty even when I wasn’t out walking.

A few weeks later, on the same route, I was surprised to see a big change in the plant I had admired. The flowers, initially a lovely white, had developed beautiful pink tones. The combination of pink and white added to its beauty, prompting me to stop and take another picture.

I was so surprised by how dramatically the colors had changed and how long it took for this transformation to happen. While I’m no horticulturist, I love flowers and often admire them on my walks. In my experience, it’s rare to see such a dramatic change in a flower’s color over time. Typically, a pink flower stays pink, a red one stays red, a yellow one stays yellow, and so on.

The unique transformation of these flowers from white to pink gave me pause. It reminded me that sometimes in life, it takes time for the full picture, the full details, and the full colorful image of our experiences to come into focus.

If you’ve lived long enough, you probably remember the days when we used to take pictures with film cameras. You had to take the film to be developed at a photo shop or, if you were a photographer, develop it in a studio. In this digital age, it’s easy to forget how the development process of pictures used to take time because now we’re so accustomed to seeing digital images almost instantaneously.

The film development process is a reminder that sometimes things take time to develop, and we can't always have the instantaneous answers, information, or details we desire. This concept holds significant relevance for us as we approach changing seasons, work toward different goals, or make big life changes. We might start with a vague sense of what we’re looking at, but as we lean into these changes or goals, new details emerge that help us make more sense of our circumstances. Once we see the full picture and all the details, we have more answers and information that help us truly appreciate our experiences.

For example, now that I know these beautiful flowers eventually transition from white to pink, I can look forward to this transformation whenever I see the same type of flowers in future years. I’ll appreciate them more next time because I was able to witness their full development.

If you’re in a season of making changes, it can be frustrating because we often want to see the full picture from the beginning. However, there’s value in appreciating the time it takes for things to develop and the opportunity to see the process unfold. Nature and film-based photos provide powerful reminders of the importance of patience, appreciation, and taking time to notice the beauty in our experiences.

As you pursue or implement new changes or goals in your life, embrace the opportunity to learn and discover more as time progresses. Remember how much can be gained through the journey of embracing the process rather than rushing to the end goal.