When you open your eyes and really notice your surroundings, you'll find there is beauty everywhere.
You may have heard the term "mindfulness" or "be here now". What about "the art of noticing"? Noticing can refresh our perspective and bring wonder into our lives.
Paying attention requires extra effort these days - with the dinging of our phones, blaring TV's and your ever-present to-do lists. These all distract from the important things that are usually right in front of us. Our minds are elsewhere, preoccupied, absent. And life plays out, whether you are paying attention or not. We risk missing out on a rich experience of our world when we don't notice those things close to us.
What we choose to focus on (of ignore) steers our days - and ultimately our lives - in a certain direction. You have the power to choose this direction.
How many times have you driven home and didn't remember any details of how you got there? Familiar surroundings tend to recede from our view. We no longer pay attention because we are spending too much time in our head.
Really taking the time and effort to notice offers an invitation to slow down, see, and appreciate the little things in life. So, what direction do you choose?
It can be as easy as asking yourself (and others who are with you) a simple question to focus and start a conversation about what you are experiencing in the moment: "What do you notice?".
Source: Epoch Times; May 14-20, 2025; The Gift of Attention