Can you sense that?

You all remember my whole happiness is a choice thing? Well, that's going real well for me right now. Among other things, and I've found myself at a point where I am perfectly happy. And a part of that happiness is a great feeling of peace. Sure, I've still got some confusion in my life, or it wouldn't' be life. But overall, I'm at peace. Which has given me the opportunity to pay attention to a few things. A lot of things actually, the little small things. Which has led to this post at this moment. My apologies to all of you that I may seem to be rambling, I kind of am. But I would like to share with you all something I've thought of lately, something I've paid more attention to than usual:

The senses. Yeah, I'm talking about the five senses. You know them: taste, touch, hearing, smell, sight. I've discovered that when you're really at peace you can pay more attention to the wonders that are the senses, and I've been thoroughly enjoying that experience. Even if your life may not be completely at peace right now, I suggest you take a moment. Find somewhere you can relax and feel some peace just for a little bit. And then just feel. And when I say that I also mean hear and see and taste and smell. Do it! As soon as possible. But as long as you're sitting here wasting time on the internet, let me just share with you some of my thoughts and experiences when it comes to the senses.

Taste: Okay, so all of us go around using this sense all the time. We're usually eating on a pretty regular basis and we don't' really think about taste very much past the point of deciding whether we like something or not. But have you ever really thought about the reasons you love what you do? I will admit that this is one sense I still don't pay a ton of attention to, but I promise that I have been thinking about it a little. For example, I was trying to figure out why I'm addicted to chips and salsa. Well, duh, it's the taste. There is something about the salty crunchiness of my favorite brand of chips that mixes perfectly with the slightly hot yet entirely fresh taste of salsa. MMMMM. so good. So pay a little more attention to what you're eating. It's even more enjoyable when you figure out why you enjoy it in the first place.

Touch: I've been exploring this one quite a bit actually. It's been a lot of fun. One of the best forms of exploration? Walking home barefoot. Yeah, I've been doing that. And it is totally awesome! I know it probably sounds a little eccentric to find so much joy in this, but on a regular walk home from work I can experience about 6 different textures on my feet. And when you're really paying attention to it, it's amazing how big of a difference you can feel. Try it sometime. It will be worth it, if you really want it to be.

Hearing: This one may be even more awesome then walking around barefoot to explore the sense of touch. Do you realize how many different things you can hear in a day? In a second? And the potential for beauty that each of those sounds have. For example, let me tell you what I can hear right now. I can hear myself typing, a sound I really don't think about that often. But now that I've pointed it out to myself, I'm thinking it sounds pretty awesome. I also have some music playing on my computer. Ah, without the sense of hearing, you'd never be able to appreciate music. Life would be so boring! and less meaningful. I also happen to be sitting next to an open window, which means right now I can hear the cars driving on Highway 89 about a block away from my house. Most of you probably think I've gone crazy, but I LOVE the sound of cars on a road, especially a busy road. Which points out one really awesome characteristic of sounds. There are millions, and we all love different sounds because they connect us to different memories. Isn't that great?

Smell: That's also another thing that we get to associate with memories, or with people, or a ton of things. Isn't that great? I've been paying more attention lately to how people smell. Which sounds a little weird, but whatever, I have been. Which means I'm learning to recognize how certain people smell. And if something else reminds me of them because it smells similar, isn't' that a great thing? Oh also, I've been remembering how much I love the smell of grass, and dirt, and all things outside and summer related. Oh, heavenly. And the best thing about smell, it lingers. So you get to hold onto the memories for a just a little longer.

Sight: I think this may be the sense I've been the most lax at increasing my attention to. But, I have noted a few things. Shades. Of colors. That is a great thing. I've learned to pay more attention to them. which helps me appreciate more beauty. And one other thing I've noticed. Patterns etc, in nature. There are tons of them, and they have an amazing natural beauty that we sometimes forget to take note of. The other day I could have stared up through a tree's branches for hours, simply the patter with which the leaves are displayed was super awesome!

Okay, thanks to those of you who suffered through my ramblings about my sense adventures of late. Now go out and have some of your own, and contemplate how amazing God's power must be to give us the gift of all five senses. And realize what evidence that is of how much he loves us. He didn't' have to make this world beautiful for us either, but he did. Now really, go enjoy it!