File:The grass was greener over there.jpg

"The grass was greener over there" , by Erik Pevernagie, oil on canvas, 100 x 80 cm

The grass always seems greener on the other side of the fence.

When a mood of "not belonging" is haunting our mind and tolling the bell for relief or happiness, life may be like a scar on the canvas of our dreams. Now is the time to wake up and slip back to the basics, in the vein of crawling back to mum's lap.

If the doom of failure stifles some time the path of our life, it can pin us down like downtrodden aliens, while, meanwhile, the world around is erupting in joy and contentment. Let's go back then to the nuts and bolts and consult the core of our inner self.

The many little unsuspected things on our road can strike us in their innocence and cure eye blindness and deafness. They may connect us with the people, and with our selves. The sparkle of every single moment can conjure up promising expectations and new budding of imagination.

Happiness is an undercurrent of sensitivity and takes a surreptitious life on its own: it is an internal contingency. We can feel it in stillness, and it stands the test of time.

Joy is an eruption of "cheerful" moments, and we want to express it: it is an external contingency. We might shout it out, as it conveys a dynamic of fleeting instants. Joy gives voice to "en-joy-ment."

"The grass always seems greener on the other side of the fence.

Many politicians promise green, green grass by blending niceties with delusion and by using alluring confidence tricks. They voice attractive tales and tell things that people like to hear.

The post-factual grassland, however, often appears to be parched and barren.

Phenomenon: Illusion, self-deception

Factual starting point of the picture: Person squatting and checking the grass