You see, when you trudge through a wet muddy field, staring down at your feet with the wind and the rain in your face, you see mud. The very stuff from which your material existence is formed. So there you are, mud, looking at yourself. Aware of your substantial self. That, of course, is another question.
Earth is a living conscious entity in the universe with multiple personality disorder.
I once found a pebble on a beach. I was looking at this pebble and wondering where it fitted in the great scheme of things. There s me looking at this pebble. I have a concept of the pebble which is my reality. Not in the same sort of way.