The Outside World is a Conveyor Belt

Trees in the garden of the Hospital Saint-Paul, 1888

From Rick Rubin's The Creative Act

37 Look for Clues.  Material for our work surrounds us at every turn. It's woven into convesation, nature, chance encounters, and existing works of art.  ...  We receive these types of messages all the time, if we remain open to them. We might read a booka nd find a quote leapig off the page, or watch a movie and notice a line that moves us to pause and rewind.   ... The transmissions are subtle: they are ever-present, but they're easy to miss.  If we aren't looking for clues, they'll pas by without us ever knowing. Notice connections and consider where they lead. ...  When something out of the ordinary happens, ask yourself why. What's the message? What could be the greater meaning?

37 You might imagine that the outside world is a conveyor belt with a stream of small packages on it, always going by.  The first step is notice the conveyor belt is there.  And then, any time you want, you can pick up one of those packages, unwrap it, and see what's inside.

41 Look for what you notice/but no one else sees.