A View of the World

This telescope and globe are on display next to a row of windows in my Dad's home. Outside those windows there is a patio. Beside the patio is a garden bed. Beyond the garden bed is an expanse of yard surrounded by fence and a big wide gate to the road. At each end of the road there is a trail to the beach. At the beach there are barnacle covered rocks, waves lapping softly or ferociously depending on the wind and a haphazard collection of driftwood that has rolled up against the shore. Along the beach is the ocean and beyond the ocean a view of islands and distant mountains and an expanse of sky. 

On this globe my Dad's home is not even visible. You couldn't even put your finger on the street where he lives. You'd have to peer intently at the smudge of land that represents the 450 km long island where I grew up, to see the tiny dot that represents the town of Comox, with a population just over 12,000. 

And to be honest, you could look at the globe for hours and still you would only see Comox if you already know it's there. This all makes me think how the world is so big and so small at the same time.