The importance of providing visual perspective

My poor mother fell and broke her ankle last week. She was in the hospital for a couple of days and has now returned home, but she's not allowed to leave the house for three weeks, and she must totter about with the use of a walker. I feel awful for her - my mother's very active and energetic. She doesn't like being inert, unlike her lazy daughter. I could spend all day in my 'bassinet,' as I call my loveseat in the living room - and indeed there are a few Sundays where I do just that, accompanied by my three Sunday papers! But my mother tirelessly bicycles all over Copenhagen, darts about the city on errands, visits exhibits, attends events, works out daily, and just doesn't stop. Well - she has stopped, temporarily, and I know how hard that must be for her! Luckily, Dad has been taking wonderful care of her, so I'm not worried. Just sympathetic.

So I decided to order something from a florist to cheer her up. It couldn't be flowers, because Dad is allergic to them, so I looked online and found what I thought was a small, elegant bowl with a small, elegant cactus arrangement in it. Here it is:

Now, I suppose if I knew anything about cacti, I would know the general size of the plants in the picture. But I don't. To me, it looked like a pretty little decorative item, perfect for a tabletop. As you can see, there's nothing in the picture to indicate scale. So - how was I to know?

How was I to know that it would arrive looking like - this?

 

Look at it! It's huge! For one thing, that is a tub! Not a decorative little pot. For another, what on earth are those tall triangles sticking out of it? And those big, knobbly - what are they, branches? And - I'll say it again... it's huge!

I mean, of course it's fine, and Mum is smiling, as you see, and she says she likes it, which I hope is true. I'm sure it is (thank you, Mum!)... I just wish there had been some item in the picture to give the thing a little perspective, that's all.

In any case, the whole thing is sort of funny, which is why I am sharing it here.

Behold the importance of providing visual perspective!