Tip of An Iceberg

"As he watched the slow scattering of the herd grazing knee-deep in clover, he developed a keen interest in the existence of certain plants to which nobody else paid attention...he foraged with his only hand among the familiar grasses for those spurned growths to which he had given no thought before. To his surprise he discovered the secret life of..."

Alejo Carpentier (Kingdom of This World 17)

In Capentier's novel, The Kingdom of This World, he inserts a handful of deep and thought provoking lines such as the one quoted above. The character Macandal in this novel notices for the first time, perhaps after losing his arm, the tiny details that make live in life. He began with the plants, and then explored into the plants to see the life of smaller plants and insects that any passerby-er often fails to notice. 

This same principle is demonstrated in the life and make-up of an iceberg. Not too long ago I came across a video produced by BBC which displayed the birth and life of an iceberg.  Often with an iceberg we are only able to see about 1/8 of the complete structure which leaves the majority hidden to the naked eye which only see the tip above water; and where icebergs are made up of frozen freshwater floating in a salt water ocean they are like an oasis in a desert.

Similarly this situation is relative to Macandal’s experience lying on the grass, yes, on a grander level, but Macandal who had always seen life by the tip but never really having excavated its true riches until now.

We can learn the secret life of plants and bugs and underwater arctic waters, but the most significant lesson would be that on first glance what we see is mostly likely only a taste of reality or the potential each location and experience has to offer. The "diamond in the rough" as Aladdin states is truly all around us. 

The majority of time people skim over life and its’ experiences like a water skier, quickly, and without much depth but the uniqueness of people, our surroundings, and the moments of life in general must be carefully analyzed and detailed to realize the force and energy that is often available to us if we stop and let it soak in us so we can discover its' secrets.