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" A L L O F O U R
K N O W L E D G E H A S
I T ' S O R I G I N S I N
O U R P E R C E P T I O N S "
Leonardo
da Vinci
" P E O P L E G O T O O
F A S T T H R O U G H
T H E W O R L D .
T H E Y D O N ' T N O T I C E
T H I N G S .
T H E Y D O N ' T
A P P R E C I A T E W H A T
T H E Y H A V E , W H A T
I S R I G H T
A R O U N D T H E M "
Delmar
Holdgrafer
" T H E F I V E S E N S E S
A R E T H E
M I N I S T E R S
O F T H E
S O U L "
Leonardo
da Vinci
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We noticed that our serenity was frequently interrupted by RVs pulling
into the outlooks and braking to a stop in a cloud of dust, followed
by the emergence of a person with a camera who quickly took a picture
of the scene, jumped back into the RV and off it went down the road,
presumably to the next scenic outlook.
Why spend time with the real thing when you can have a picture of it
to look at later? All Mary and I have of those Kodak moments are a thousand
words to describe our experience. We savoured that experience. We still
talk about it 25 years later. I remind myself of it when I start to
speed through life and do not take the time to appreciate what is right
in front of me.
There are other reminders if I make an effort to notice. I found myself
in a traffic jam recently. There was a periodic inching forward of the
parade of vehicles followed by a panorama of flashing brake lights.
Hundreds of people were caught in the tension of being in the driver's
seat with nowhere to go but slowly. Someone's idea of hell, I am sure.
Our collective necks craned forward to see what obstacle was delaying
our importance. I noticed, out of the corner of my eye, that one driver
had pulled over to the shoulder of the road. He reclined his seat back
and was clearly relaxing as he surveyed the clear blue sky on a beautiful
autumn day. I remembered then about savouring. I imagine that he arrived
at his destination only slightly later than other drivers and felt a
great deal better.
People who go fast through life will probably view savouring as one
more thing that has to be done quickly. How can we go more slowly and
"open the doors of experience?" (M. Gelb-How To
Think Like Leonardo da Vinci). We can start by making better
use of our five senses.
Leonardo da Vinci observed that the average human "looks without seeing,
listens without hearing, touches without feeling, eats without tasting,
moves without physical awareness, inhales without awareness of odour
or fragrance and talks without thinking (M. Gelb).
Add the senses to the actions with the intention of living more enjoyably
and you have the beginnings of savouring.
Savouring is receiving rather than doing. As such, it is a form of self-care
and caring about your self.
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