Can't See the Forest For the Trees (or how to see the big picture and the details all at once)

A conversation with Delia this morning reminds me of my ever-present obsession with the seeming mutual exclusivity of either The Big Picture or The Little Details. She commented how it seems silly for feminists to rail on and on about the hijab as a restrictive facet of life in the Arab world, or about how it should be chairPERSON, not chairMAN, when female genital mutilation, among other things, is still a major concern.

In my experience, people have a hard time striking the balance between focusing on the long term or big picture, or having the presence of mind to also pick up on the little details. This can range from ensuring a fabulous high-profile speaker and a wonderful venue for an event, but forgetting to make a schedule checklist for the event preparation volunteer staff, to enacting mandatory health insurance, without noting that mandatory doesn't mean everyone will actually have insurance or have access to prompt care.

Is wrapping your head around The Big Picture or The Little Details a one or the other skill? My time spent as a program assistant helped enable me to at least be aware of both, and make sure to crosscheck that all the little details supported the big picture, at the same time as ensuring that the big picture could be appropriately implemented at the lowest level. I can see how people at different, more specific levels of business, government or leadership can let one slip away--I still don't think that's ok. Menino should have an understanding of the ways that laws get implemented in local communities--for example, if bike lanes are painted in all around the city, how is that being publicized? Are people aware of the laws that go along with biking and driving together in the city? At the same time, areas with high numbers of bike accidents should be made aware of the new lanes, and perhaps bike organizations and community safety organizations should be encouraged to discuss the new lanes, and new behaviors that should go along with them.

Naomi Wolf's article addressing what Muslim women want looks at the big picture and the details on a much larger sociopolitical landscape. By addressing the movers and shakers among Muslim women, instead of the often superficial claims of the hijab and other customs symbolize repression and old-fashioned culture, she looks to BOTH the overarching issues and the lowest levels of activism. Headscarves? How about women who are victims of honor killings? And how about more press for the headscarf-wearing women who are business owners, political activists, and non-profit leaders?

Moral of the story: instead of being tied to the top-down or the bottom-up perspective of an issue or a task, perhaps more success can be garnered by taking the opportunity to look through both lenses. If people at either end continue to see a concept as workable in only massive or minor ways, we'll continue to have problems "solved" or "addressed" on paths that never intersect on a real solution.