Stop and Smell the Roses

I read long ago that to really hold a memory, you need to experience it with all of your exteroceptive senses.  We learn about our five senses in pre-school but seem to take them for granted as we mature. Scientifically, our senses link to emotion as well as memory.  What is your Happy Place?  Your Happiest Memory?  Can you revisit it with all of your senses?  It seems so simple, yet we rarely take the time to exercise it.

A few years ago my Honey and I were on vacation in California and stopped in Half Moon Bay for an afternoon.  We sat on the beach and watched the skim boarders enjoying the surf.  I relaxed, laying back on the sand without a care in the world.  I put a sticky note in my mind that this was a Happy Place -- a memory I wanted to treasure.  I ran my fingers through the sand, grabbed a handful of warm grains, and felt them fall through, tickling my skin.  I inhaled deeply and felt the salty air travel through my nose, into my lungs, and back out.  I heard gulls flying above calling to the fish below and children laughing as they built sandcastles in front of us. I tasted the sweet tanginess of the lemonade we were sharing, savoring the refreshing drink. I closed my eyes for a moment and just enjoyed “being.”   I sketched the moment in my mind, cementing the memory.  When I opened my eyes I watched the clouds forming, slowly dancing above me. The ebb and flow of the waves reminded me of how quickly life changes - that if we don't pay attention we forget what's most important.

Living life with all of your senses is sometimes a challenge.  We get busy in our daily lives and spend so much time rushing from place to place that we forget to savor the moments.  Slow down, take notice of your surroundings, pay attention, and take time to smell the roses.

Your homework this week is to think of something that makes you happy, or something that once made you happy. Can you retain it, or recall it, with all of your senses.  How does that strengthen or sweeten the memory? I am positive that taking the time to notice, to savor each sense, will create more meaningful memories.