The Kaleidoscope – A Different Perspective
A kaleidoscope is a device used to generate patterns through the reflection of light across multiple mirrors, and is a theme of this website. Often this light is broken down into different colors that form the pattern which can be changed as one turns the mirrors. The kaleidoscope can be a wonderful metaphor for how therapy can help bring a different perspective to one’s experience, simultaneously appreciating what is as well as hoping for and moving toward something different, and hopefully better. The repetition of the pattern because of the orientation of the mirrors has similarities to the mathematical concept of fractals which are geometric shapes that can be split into parts, each of which is approximately a smaller copy of the whole. In mathematics this is called self-similarity. Fractals have more recently been found to be a model that can be very helpful in understanding such diverse and complex systems as rainforests and the human body. The idea of naturally occurring repeated shapes and forms can in some ways the representative of how thoughts, feelings, and behaviours form themes in our daily lives, across time.
