Understanding the sense of the moment. The way something appears or smells. Considerations of being able to see a smell. The taste of a late summer berry. The beauty of youth. The blindness of childhood. Wisdom is developed through the five senses.
In childhood, we learn about the 5 senses in our earliest experiences. As a grown up, some of this learning needs updating. It is helpful to have new reminders about the simple foundation of how we experience the world: through our taste, touch, smell, sound, and sight. Oftentimes these senses are over-stimulated. In our modern world, we follow media and blue-lit devices. With your developed wisdom, be reminded that we are part of nature. Be natural and be still. Appreciate the smell of a ripened peach. Feel joy from a child’s laughter. Enjoy the beauty of smiling eyes. Nurture your senses and feel well.
Relating to our human nature.
Our nature as humans is to connect with other humans and animals. Hunting and foraging for seeds is part of human DNA in as little as a few hundred years ago. This information is still part of our beings. We need natural encounters to be the regenerative and healthful beings who dominate the Earth. Continuation is important and nurturing, or sharpening the senses through exercise, practice, and mindful awareness will foster healthy relationships and connectedness to our environment. Offering security and warm feelings of love nurtures our psyche.
Maslow’s Hierarchy of Needs illuminates the building blocks of self-realization. Finding success to understand ourselves leads to feelings of self-accomplishment & achieving one’s full potential. To reach this level of comfort with yourself is directly linked to the simple needs of:
- Physiological: nourishment, shelter, warmth, rest
- Safety
- Belonging
To be a fully functioning well person, these simple needs are important. I know and encounter fellow adults stuck in needing these first three building blocks of this hierarchy of needs.
Connecting with our environment helps us to take ourselves seriously. It gives us the reassurance of our physiological space. We understand we are safe or not safe and can make changes to enhance our lives. We understand our community through relating to our neighbors. Understand and allow for the complicated nature of those around us to feel our place of belonging and being a part of your home place.
Connect to the earthly world. Our modern world has simplified the most mundane activities. Mundane has two meanings, one being the boring or dullness. The other which is quite delightful is: “of this earthly world rather than a heavenly or spiritual one”. What is a reality for many is the simple acts of being engaged have become necessary to elevate to the everyday to-do list.
Take the time away from your screen and sink your hands into grass. Garden. Sweep your front walk or walk your dog. Take time to have a chat with your neighbor. Forget about running to the market and make something from your pantry. Enjoy the convenience and then enjoy the fresh quality of your next meal procured from the farmer’s market.
Enjoy the variance of your lush life. Relish in the thought that many Americans experience: managing abundance. This is a privilege.
Take the time to consider the ingredients in your next meal. How fresh are the ingredients? How can you make the meal more healthful? Add herbs and use the best oils and ingredients. This is your body and you must live in it for the rest of your life.
Feed yourself nutritive ingredients. Make it a safe place and nourish only with fresh foods rich in vitality. Give yourself a delicious glass of water. Enjoy the feelings as it travels from your tongue down through your throat, into the esophagus, into your stomach. Can you feel it absorbing? Be aware of this feeling. Then when you eat things which make you feel bad, you will be aware of this feeling too. Then you can make your body safe and correct that for next time you eat. Perhaps you won’t choose that which makes you feel ill.
Understanding that the body you reside in now was the body you nourished 35 days ago. There is a connection to the foods that you eat and the way your body responds. The nutrients nourish the blood, which circulates throughout your body and helps reflect in your appearance the state of your health and how you feel. It takes 35 days for the effects of the nutrients that you eat now to turn into the interior cells in your organs and bones.
Check-in with your daily habits and add nourishing foods and activities to your day. Continue in this path until you have displaced bad habits of mindlessness.
Be aware of these habits and establish better standards to foster change. Strategize a plan for change. Daily practice is the only way. We are alive every day, thus the daily practice. If we only lived once a week, we would only need to exercise or eat once a week. But we get to live every day. Be alive every day.
