I remember experiencing the world much more vividly when I was a little boy.

I would step outside on an autumn evening and feel joy as the cool breeze rustled the leaves and caressed my skin. In the summers, I would listen to the orchestra of insects buzzing around me. I would waddle out of the cold swimming pool and the most wonderful shiver would cascade out of me as I peed in the bathroom. In the winters, I would get mesmerized by the simple sound of my boots crunching the snow under me.

These were not experiences that I actively sought out. They just happened. I did not need to stop to smell the figurative roses, the roses themselves would stop me in my tracks.

As I got older, I started feeling less and less and thinking more and more.

I’ve tried meditation, recreation, vacation, resignation, and medication. Some of these things have helped but I am still left wondering… is this a side effect of getting older? Or is there something wrong with me?

  • slackassassin
    link
    fedilink
    arrow-up
    20
    ·
    1 year ago

    Both perspectives are true and effort is the key in either case.

    Not everyone is destined to lose appreciation for the moment, regardless of “newness”.

    Nor is everyone so easily adept at willing it to be so.

    But engaged awareness, to your point, is a helpful consideration to be sure!

    What a great tool to reach for!