Sensical

[Ecrits Blogophilia 49.14 ~ Time Traveling]
[Hard Bonus: include a Meatloaf lyric or line]
[Easy Bonus: mention a hammer & a nail]

„It‘s all coming back to me…“ in bits and pieces but it is definitely worth thinking about!
It‘s been at least 5 years…(maybe more?) since I last saw my paperback copy of a book called:

„The Happiness Project“, by Gretchen Rubin.

I guess my timing wasn‘t quite right for reading that book (because I never did). I placed the book on a shelf and thought to myself… I really have to read that book.

Now many years later… the same author (Gretchen Rubin) has written a few other books including:

„Life in Five Senses“… which I have read cover to cover and enjoyed enough to share it here with you. I imagine that my „timing“ for this one is right on the mark … as everything the author has written just resonates.
Basically she writes (beautifully) of discovering (or rediscovering) all of her 5 (?) senses. We DO actually have more than that… but the basic 5 that we take for granted… are the „meat“ of this book.

We all have a way of not really appreciating things that are just „simply there“… have you noticed that too?
As adults we seem to fall into very routine ways of Seeing/Hearing/Tasting/Smelling & Touching — contrary to when we were Toddlers and so excited when we first discovered the „magic“ of our (5) senses.
Maybe we just started (at some point) taking the gift of our 5 senses for granted? We lost something precious in our „oh so busy lives“ and (some of us) don’t even realize it yet?

I asked myself…When was the last time I focused (really focused) on all of my senses (on a daily basis)?
How could I have forgotten to notice the very sensations that left me with such powerful memories as these:

*How wonderful a Lemon Ice tastes on a hot sunny day:

I was eight years old & bought a cup of homemade lemon 🍋 ice at Fran‘s Ices in Brooklyn, NY… for 10 cents. It was the first time I got an allowance & I spent it all on that ice!

It was so tangy & sweet all at the same time & felt like heaven going down my dry parched throat on that hot August afternoon).

*The amazing sound of an electric guitar echoing in a song:

I was in my early twenties, my first apartment … the only furniture was a record player and a bed. I was playing a vinyl album of The English Congregation‘s Best Hits. There was a song that made me go weak in the knees „ Softly Whispering I love You“… the sound of a lonely twang on that guitar imprinting on my brain & forever making me love the sound of the electric guitar.

*The wonder of seeing the sun rise up from up on a hilltop:

New Year‘s Day 1970… after a New Year‘s Eve celebration with family and friends, (and a dusting of snow overnight) a group of us climbed up a hill and watched the begin of the very first day of a brand new year. We felt so powerful… so many possibilities … a feeling almost of being reborn. How could anyone ever forget such a sight that inspired such a feeling?

*The heavenly aroma of Lilacs in the Spring:

My father planted Lilac bushes in our back yard in Brooklyn. I would wait every Spring for those lavender blooms with their intoxicating aroma. My father would lovingly prune & water them & proudly cut bouquets for our kitchen table. My memories of that aroma bring back my father to me everytime I see or smell Lilacs.

*The feel of holding a loved one‘s hand:

My mother always held on tightly to my hand outside when I was young… I sometimes would struggle against her and cry that I was too old to have my hand held. The one time that she let go (just for a second to help my sister) I wandered away and was „lost“ at the Bronx Zoo (in NYC) for an entire afternoon. The police were involved & a kind stranger finally reunited me with my family. I was three years old (spoke no English) and was terrified. My mother nearly lost her mind that day. I realized after that day…that my Mother‘s hand was more than just a hand…it was love, and security and safety. It was a lot for a 3 year old to comprehend…but it stayed with me…that new „feel of her hand“ holding mine.

Is NOW the time to pay more attention to our amazing 5 senses? The ones that enable us to function and navigate through the pathways of our everyday lives. These senses that can add spice & adventure to the seemingly mundane tasks we go through daily?
One suggestion (from the book) is to keep a daily

Five-Senses Journal … a simple one… with these headings… SEE—SMELL—TASTE—HEAR—TOUCH

The author writes:

„At the end of every day, I would note my most memorable sensations. This proved to be invaluable as a quick daily reminder to maintain my focus on my five senses forever … and also felt like a gratitude journal…“

☝🏽Almost immediately after reading that I had a desire to take a sheet of paper and jot down what my most memorable sensations had been that very day.

So, how best to hammer the „nail“ of this wonderful book into the heads of anyone reading this blog?
Most of us go through phases (especially in the later stages of life) where things just all seem the same. Life seems too predictable (at times even mundane and boring).
We look for ways to „change it up“ and feel a desire to simply feel more „alive“. By rediscovering the simple pleasures of our own five senses (every day) we don‘t need a lot of money, don‘t need to travel to any exotic locations, don‘t need to take risks that we‘re not ready or willing to take… all we need to do is focus on those five senses.

Happiness… I‘ve heard it said… is an inside job. Empowering ourselves with knowledge (about ourselves):

What we like (and don‘t like), need (and don‘t need) and what we want to experience (or leave alone) in our every day lives is priceless information that no one else can tell us…except us.
So I guess if you’ve been thinking:

„Life is a lemon and I want my money back“… just try reading this 📕 book … it might help change your mind?
Maybe you’ll see that being more aware of the „sensical“ can give life a new dimension…like a fresh coat of paint… perhaps even add a few colors and hues you never knew existed.

Btw… the Author of „Life in Five Senses“ and „The Happiness Project“ (and a few others) has a FB page, an IG page, a YouTube page & podcasts & many interviews online. If you want to delve deeper… she seems to be a very interesting human being (as well as an accomplished author).
Have fun reading and let me know if you try that daily journal idea? It would be great to compare journal pages 😄