Imagine starting each day with the loud joyful phrase, “WAKE UP SENSES!”
Let’s try to wake up your senses and make each day more complete.
MINDFUL SENSES CHALLENGE
As you work through these daily challenges, journaling is a great way to revisit all that you experience. Journaling can be words, phrases, pictures, or whatever helps you remember the experience.
DAY 1
Bring all your focus on your sense of sight. Think of yourself as an eagle, able to see a rabbit two miles away. Take it all in while you focus on little details and the big picture.
Look at your hand. Notice the different colors, textures, and the wrinkles as you bend your wrist. Go outside and fi nd a blade of grass, a flower, or the bark of a tree. Try seeing the unique colors and lines running through them. Keep it going! You have a whole day to explore through your sense of sight.
DAY 2
Now to focus on your sense of hearing—what I called Big Ears in my classroom. Big Ears is simply imagining you have giant ears that can take in the closest quiet sounds, as well as sounds miles away like an elephant. Sit in your house, close your eyes if you are comfortable, and listen. Take time to notice and name sounds. Next, try to listen only to sounds in the room you are in. Can you hear ones you’ve never heard before? Finally, listen very closely to your own sounds. Maybe your tummy is growling, or you have to sneeze.
DAY 3
You don’t have to be adventurous to focus on your sense of taste, but it would make the day more interesting. Start with something you like to eat. Does it taste the same on the tip of your tongue, the sides, or the back of your mouth? Think about the texture, the temperature, and the time it takes to finish your first bite. Remember to think as you eat. For most of us it’s a whole new experience.
DAY 4
You might need an adult’s help for this next challenge. Find food in your refrigerator or pantry and inhale deeply. You can almost taste it, right? Now try it again with your eyes closed. Did it smell different? Next, go outside and sit quietly while taking in all the smells around you. You might smell grass, flowers, rain, or even animals around you. Remember to focus on your sense of smell all day.
DAY 5
Last let’s explore your sense of touch or feeling. Look in your closet and try on a soft sweater, then try a scratchy wool one. What about sinking into a hot tub and then a cold pool? Back to food—mushy peas, not a fan of them, but crisp fresh ones I adore. Can you guess the mammal that has the best sense of touch? It is none other than the star-nosed mole.
That’s it, five days of mini challenges to wake up your senses. You may never see, smell, taste, touch, or hear the world in the same way again. Give it a try. Revisit your journal and add to it, keeping your senses alive. Invite others to jump into the challenges.
