Have fun! Discover! Remember!

I love this time of year!  I have a real appreciation for the beginning of Spring.  I love the sweet smell in the air, the sounds of the birds, and the warmth that hints of the Summer to come.  I love to open my windows and let the air inside.  I love to think about the beauty that is about to splash forth in colors and fragrances.  I love seeing the world wake up after surviving Winter.  I love seeing people out and about.  I look forward to the sound of lawn mowers and the smell of fresh cut grass.  I like digging in the dirt, setting with my own hands the stage for the production that bursts forth.
Actually, truth be told, I have a love for each of the seasons....including in its own quirky way Winter.  There is a different feeling, a different sense that comes with each season.
However, there have been Springs that came to my section of the planet, but my heart just wasn't there.  I couldn't appreciate what was happening around me because of what was happening inside of me.  What happens to us when we lose sensuality?  The mindfulness of physical senses that creates emotional, intellectual, spiritual and physical presence?
When we lose our sensate focus we take things around us for granted.  We lose the ability to be present, both with ourselves and with others.  We lose a sense of connectedness.  Often when we lose sensate focus we get so busy we don't notice the noises around us.  Sometimes we don't notice the people around us. Sensuousness requires stopping and paying attention.  Being open to all that our senses bring us, we become more open and aware of the world around us. We begin to realize that not only is this world beautiful, but it also has purpose & meaning....and because we are part of this creation, so do our lives have purpose and meaning.  We find ourselves feeling a part of something greater than ourselves. So how do we stop and pay attention?  How can we practice sensuality?  Here's some ideas I've come up with.  I'd love to hear your favorite ways to stop and pay attention.....

• Have fun!  Discover!  Remember!
• Get Inspired
• Look out a window
• Stretch
• Go for a walk
• Really listen to music
• Sit outside and just listen
• Be quiet
  

As the author Howard Thurman said "Don't ask what the world needs.  Ask what makes you come alive and go do it.  Because what the world needs is people who have come alive."