Looking Below the Surface

Often, we don't take time to look below the surface.  While visiting my friend, Vladimyr, last weekend, I was looking at his ude for a few minutes while he was in his kitchen, making a pot of coffee.  I noticed that there seemed to be some paper strips with writing on them in the area below the sound hole or mouth of his ude.  Having my pocket camera handy, I took a shot of the sound hole (unbeknown to Vladimir) and, later at home, was able to better see the writing through the grid.  It gave the address of the ude maker in Istanbul written on thin strips of paper glued to the bottom of the sound chamber.

By email the next day, I asked Vlad if he knew what was written inside his ude.  He was totally shocked and thoroughly impressed that I might know that there was something there.  I haven't told him yet how I knew this.  Sometimes, it's good to keep Vlad guessing and impressed with my knowledge.  The point of all this is that, sometimes, it's good to look below the surface, whether you're observing something or someone.  You might, as I did, learn something new.

On the other hand, I suppose there are times it might be best not to look below the surface.  You might be angered, disappointed, saddened, or even disgusted with what you see.  I know, for example, that I really don't want to lift up my carpeting and see what has been deposited there over the past 20 odd years.  Someday, when I change the carpeting, I'll leave that 'joy' to the carpet people.  And, I'm sure I don't want to know what's below the surface of some of the nasty people I've met over the years because, from what I have already seen, I suspect I would like them even less than I already do.

But, with some other people, I look forward to getting to know them better.  From what I've seen so far with these wonderful people, I expect I'll like them even more than I do now when I learn more about them.