This is Day 11 of the 21-Day Journaling Challenge held in Nov 2011. The challenge is now over but you can do the tasks in your own time. Visit the overview page for all the challenge tasks.
Hi everyone – Welcome to Day 11 of 21DJC! :)Yesterday’s question was: “Who Do You Enjoy Spending Time With?“. (Read the responses.) A number of you immediately kicked off your answers by saying “Myself”, which I found somewhat alarming given the intent of the question wasn’t to ask you to “choose” between spending time with yourself or others. (Perhaps I could have made the question clearer when I wrote the post.)While I recognize the merit of enjoying time with yourself (I definitely enjoy my alone time, and I think it’ll be alarming if one doesn’t enjoy being with oneself), the intent of yesterday’s question is to make you aware of who you enjoy spending time with, know why you enjoy spending time with them, and appreciate them for being in your life. That’s the first objective.The second objective, which is more subtle, is to support you in making empowering friendships. By being aware of the traits that resonate with you, you can consciously gravitate towards the people who share those traits. This helps you to make friendships that support you, friendships that you bring the best out of you.This is not an attack towards introverts, because I myself enjoy introvertism. Neither is it an avocation to be an extrovert. Extroverts are people who enjoy spending time with others over spending time by themselves, while introverts are people who prefer alone time over social time. Whether you are an introvert or extrovert though, you can enjoy time with yourself and time with others at the same time – it’s not a mutually exclusive relationship.Yesterday’s question was about identifying who you enjoy spending time among people you already spend time with, not about asking you to choose between whether you enjoy spending time alone or whether you enjoy spending time with others.There will always be certain people we like to hang around more, compared to other people in our life. For example, I believe some of you enjoy spending time with the other participants here, during challenges. Who are these people we like to spend time with? Why do we like to spend time with them? And how can we meet more of such people, so as to expand our consciousness to greater heights?At the end of the day, such people help to bring the best out of ourselves. By consciously building these friendships, we create a powerful support network that supports us in our growth journey.For me, I enjoy spending time with people who have high consciousness. People who focus on what matters in life, and not daily trivialities and gossip. People who have a keen willingness to learn and grow. People who are earnest in their communication, and do not speak behind other people’s backs. People who pursue their passions and make the best out of life. People who give space for others to grow and don’t impose their beliefs on others. People who believe in working hard and are willing to work hard, as opposed to people who skive and try to look for the easy way out.This awareness help me realize why I feel drained when I hang out around lazy people who often complain, procrastinate, and gossip about others. It also helps me realize why I feel energized when I’m around certain people, because our energies rub off each other. Hence, I make sure to limit the time I spend with the former group, and spend more time with people in the latter group. Doing so helps me to maintain a positive, conscious state of mind.With that said, let’s now move to today’s question!
Hi everyone – Welcome to Day 11 of 21DJC! :)Yesterday’s question was: “Who Do You Enjoy Spending Time With?“. (Read the responses.) A number of you immediately kicked off your answers by saying “Myself”, which I found somewhat alarming given the intent of the question wasn’t to ask you to “choose” between spending time with yourself or others. (Perhaps I could have made the question clearer when I wrote the post.)While I recognize the merit of enjoying time with yourself (I definitely enjoy my alone time, and I think it’ll be alarming if one doesn’t enjoy being with oneself), the intent of yesterday’s question is to make you aware of who you enjoy spending time with, know why you enjoy spending time with them, and appreciate them for being in your life. That’s the first objective.The second objective, which is more subtle, is to support you in making empowering friendships. By being aware of the traits that resonate with you, you can consciously gravitate towards the people who share those traits. This helps you to make friendships that support you, friendships that you bring the best out of you.This is not an attack towards introverts, because I myself enjoy introvertism. Neither is it an avocation to be an extrovert. Extroverts are people who enjoy spending time with others over spending time by themselves, while introverts are people who prefer alone time over social time. Whether you are an introvert or extrovert though, you can enjoy time with yourself and time with others at the same time – it’s not a mutually exclusive relationship.Yesterday’s question was about identifying who you enjoy spending time among people you already spend time with, not about asking you to choose between whether you enjoy spending time alone or whether you enjoy spending time with others.There will always be certain people we like to hang around more, compared to other people in our life. For example, I believe some of you enjoy spending time with the other participants here, during challenges. Who are these people we like to spend time with? Why do we like to spend time with them? And how can we meet more of such people, so as to expand our consciousness to greater heights?At the end of the day, such people help to bring the best out of ourselves. By consciously building these friendships, we create a powerful support network that supports us in our growth journey.For me, I enjoy spending time with people who have high consciousness. People who focus on what matters in life, and not daily trivialities and gossip. People who have a keen willingness to learn and grow. People who are earnest in their communication, and do not speak behind other people’s backs. People who pursue their passions and make the best out of life. People who give space for others to grow and don’t impose their beliefs on others. People who believe in working hard and are willing to work hard, as opposed to people who skive and try to look for the easy way out.This awareness help me realize why I feel drained when I hang out around lazy people who often complain, procrastinate, and gossip about others. It also helps me realize why I feel energized when I’m around certain people, because our energies rub off each other. Hence, I make sure to limit the time I spend with the former group, and spend more time with people in the latter group. Doing so helps me to maintain a positive, conscious state of mind.With that said, let’s now move to today’s question!21DJC Day 11
For most of us, we are blessed with 5 senses – Sight, Hearing, Taste, Smell and Touch. We have a 6th sense that is Intuition, but it’s not in the scope of today’s question. Today, I’d like you to think about this:Out of Your 5 Senses, Which is the Most Important to You, and Why?
Your Task Today:
- Reflect and answer today’s question. There’s no word limit – whether minimum or maximum. Write as few or as many words as you want. It’s all up to what you want to express!
- Share your answer. After you are done writing, copy and paste your answer in the comments area and post it there.
- Check out other participants’ answers. Other participants will be sharing their answers too, so feel free to read and reply to their answers. This is a group course, so let’s support each other in these 21 days.
Look forward to reading your answers! :D
((Images: Empty book for journaling, Woman breathing))
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Sight, hands down. The world is beautiful, and there are so many places I want to see…
For me the sense of sight is the most important. How would I be able to experience nature, trees, plants, streams, mountains, the sky, etc. if I can’t see.
If I can’t smell, taste would be out of the window, but I’d rather live with eating for the sake of nourishing my body than not be able to see.
if I can touch it would be a great loss, but I’d still be able to see how my touch positively affects those around me.
If I can’t hear or speak i’d still be able to see other’s reactions in situations and I’m certain my sense of observation will be heightened for lack of hearing. The largest percentage of communication is in any case not verbal, but visual.
I cannot picture myself losing one of the five senses – I know I would be lost without them. If I have to pick one though… I suppose sight would be the most important. If I couldn’t see I would never be able to paint again, enjoy the colours in the evening sky or my husband’s blue eyes. I would no longer be able to work as a photographer or go horseback riding. I wouldn’t be able to drive anymore. Even cooking would be hazardous if it involved the stove or oven. I would lose my independence, my career and my ability as a visual artist.
My sense of smell. I have a hard time hearing from one ear, and wear glasses. But my sense of smell is something else :-) I love the smell of grass after it has been cut, the smell of the ocean, of my favorite foods. I even enjoy the smell of decaying leaves, if only because it is a sign that winter is approaching.
I believe there are no stupid questions only questions which purpose we fail to understand.
What is the purpose of this particular question?
In my view it is a limiting type of a question from the same family as the following:
Whose interest is the most important in the business enterprise: employee, customer or the shareholder?
or What do you like the most in a woman: her looks, her intellect or her sense of humour?
Why limiting oneself to choosing but one? All senses play their unique and very important role in my life: a scent of a licorice stick pierces my body instantly shoving me right back to my childhood playground and the memory of the dirty, outstreched hand of my friend sharing proudly a piece of candy stolen quickly from his gradma’s cupboard – scent is the most instantenuous driver into my past. The hug of my mother when she consoled me after a nasty fall – what could be a better medicine to the black despair of a hurt knee? – orphans wither from the lack of human touch faster than from the lack of food.. The sound of the warm evening rain in early May years ago when I run for my very first rendezvous still fresh in my mind like if it was yesterday.. And the sight of the summer field full of cornflowers and poppies on my grandparents farm – what an unforgettable feast, superior to the most exquisite painting.
I will not even consider the taste for it acts like a super-magnet embedded deep within my body – slight memory of the warm crusty bread barely out of the earth oven with freshly beaten butter straight from the cow makes my mouth salivate just like my puppy waiting now for his bowl full of yummy meat.
To kick even one of the above to the curb seems limiting to me but to shift all 4 into the shadow of inferiority to 1 seems impossible.
By nature I am a very sensuous woman and treasure all my 5 senses in its own unique way – each bringing treasures unlike the other 4. Love them all! That is how I experience the world and how the world sends its messages to me, every minute of every day.
For me, the most important one would be sight. Because I wouldn’t be able to perceive reality in the sense of the images it feeds my eyes.
Also because, I connect seeing with proof of existence, so if I could no longer see, any thing else would be like ghosts, or like a belief I can’t confirm.
Plus, I value a lot of things I am able to experience by sight.
My sight is most important to me because it augments my hearing. I use it to read body language which often communicates more honestly and effectively than the spoken word though intonation and nuance add dimensions to the spoken word too.
Ironically, the one sense most important to me is the one I neglect the most- sight.
Why do I love it?
Well, I love looking at things. Seriously, I like looking at things. I love the clean white walls around me, my warm brown sheets, the verdant grass and leaves, the vivid blue sky, the neutrality of concrete, and the brilliant hues of flowers.
I love how the sun shines and casts shadows. I especially love rays of sunshine breaking through the canopy or clouds. Rainbows are quite nice too. I love the gradation and brilliance that comes with sunrise and sunset. I love the stark contrast and bold lines of a silhouette in the dark.
I also love to draw, where I can capture reality, or recreate it. I love the variety.
I would be sad if I were to lose touch- I love the feel of smooth cashmere, the warmth of a shower, the solid grain of wood, and running my fingers against the grain in hair, especially short hair that almost feels like velvet. I would be sad to lose hearing- music can affect my mood so much, which is why half the time I have something in my ears. I would be sad if I lost taste- since I love cuisine from around the world, the wonderful contrast of sweet and salty flavors, and the joy I feel from eating good garlic. I would be sad if I lost smell- since my nose is sensitive and sometimes I treat myself to scented oils.
But none of them would cause me more sadness than loving sight. It is the way I connect with the world best, the way that reminds me of why I love the world I’m in, and just how lucky I am.
the most important sense to me is signt because as an artist i depend on what i see and how i see the world to develop my skills. Initially i already knew the importance of sight when my skills were unrefined. However as I developed my skill I learned more and more that how i see the world was changing. I started to notice different details such as lighting shadow, texture these things seemed more significant to me now and I was really surprised. I also realized how much more scary it would be if something happened to me so I would try to make sure I didn’t do anything that would jepordize my desire to draw and develop my skills as an artist. Its a really strange feeling and to be honest I didn’t think too much of it before but now I’m starting to see how the world is more alive and things are never boring because there is always something I oberserve and it becomes how I can draw that as realistic as i can ;)
that is easy for me to answer, it would have to be my eyes as i am a great reader and am alsio writing a book this would be very difficult to do without my eyes.
but ears are a close second as I love to listen to people and hear their perspective oneverything and anything
thridly it would have to be touch as my nickname growing up was baby hugs from the care bears even to this day i love giving hugs and recieving them are great to
I’m gonna have to go with touch. If I didn’t have any of the other senses I could feel my way through life. Touch can be such a comfort. Touch can speak volumes. I think being touched and touching others is sensuous, comforting, cool, warm, …… You know you are not alone when you experience touch.
Every sense is important to me for sure, but the most important is my sense of sight because I lean more on my imagination in evry thing. So this sense help me feed my imagination.
Without a doubt, my most important sense is my vision. I can learn to read lips, but, I am really vision bound. I learn best with visual stimulation. I’ve read Helen Keller’s autobiography. She did not allow herself to be a victim or be seen as handicapped. What an inspiration her story is to me. I think I would feel so vulnerable if I couldn’t see. I remember a movie with Audrey Hepburn where she played a blind woman and Cary Grant was kind of scary. That must have made a deep impression.
Sight is the most important to me because it bring me to know what the world look like and meet the view of the world. Let me read the book, and see the beautiful world and it views by sight. Leny
Dear Celes, this is a such a thought provoking question- I just spent the last 15 mins imagining how it would be to lose any 1 of my senses. To be unable to see the amazing colors, the sound of a gurgling brook, the soft touch of a baby’s caress or the aroma or taste of my mom’s cooking- how perfectly horrible. I honestly feel so good that I have perfect health and can enjoy all my 5 senses. Thanks – without this question, I don’t think I would’ve appreciated them so much.
Coming back to answer your question- I think I would miss sight the most. Imagine not being able to see the fascinating colors of nature, the shapes and structures of the things around us. I will not say I’m a predominantly visual person, but I think vision does alert and sharpen our other senses. Like a steaming plate of veggies- the steam that we observe focuses our attention on the sizzling heat and aroma of the food itself. The huggability of a teddy bear near makes us want to touch its inviting soft fur. A rock band display makes us anticipate ( or dread, as the case may be) the sounds of its music, even if the artists themselves aren’t around.
In fact, I am almost thinking of spending at least the next half hour trying to move around the house ( a safe expt) to see if I can put my other 4 senses to better work.
To anyone who choose sight: remember Luke Skywalker when is training to learn how to use the light saber.
He must be bended so he can start using the force.
Yes I know as a spiritual master-teacher-in-personal-growth is a little outdated..but
just food for thought :dance:
There is nothing wrong with being a little out-dated. :)
Star Wars is a timeless adventure that will be around for many many years…. ;)
I find that my sense of sight is of most importance to me – all of the other senses can lead you astray.
My most important sense is sight.
I think it’s hard to choose just one sense. Honestly, they are all very important to me, I want to see the beautiful scenery, I want to hear the melodies of music, I want to smell the fresh picked flowers, I want to taste the clean mountain air, and I want to touch the people I love (please don’t mind my run on sentence here!).
However, I think the sense that would be most important to me would be sight (like most other people). Sure, some people can get by without it, but I value my sight very much. Without my sight, I can’t see things, I’d always need help, most importantly, I would feel lost. I can get by without the other senses (not that I would imagine it though) but sight is one I would not want to give up on.
I value my sight most. I cannot imagine living without my sight. With these eyes I can see the world, people’s faces and their smiles, the green of the trees, the blue of the sea, the colorful flowers, the sky, read, write this journal, drive, go wherever I want to go independently, etc.
I appreciate all my 5 senses and having all of them is a blessing for which I am always grateful. Take any one of them away and it would be a challenge physically and emotionally. Though, of course, we have heard of many who have done great with their lives despite losing their sight or being born without sight or hearing, without limbs, etc.
I wouldn’t like to lose my vision nor any of my other senses for that matter. They complement each other. Having all these 5 senses makes it that much easier to live and to reach my highest potential on this earth. I don’t have any excuses not to! :cool:
Out of my 5 senses, which is the most important to me?
I can imagine it would be quite difficult adapting to the loss of any of our senses. But if I had to choose the most important that I would not want to lose, it would would have to be sight. There are a number of reasons sight is the most important to me.
For a start, without sight I would no longer be able to read, unless I learned to read braille or instead started listening to audio books. That last one wouldn’t be so bad, but both would require the help of someone else. And that alone would be a significant handicap for me. Even ordering audio books from the internet and downloading them would be impossibe on my own. Finding my way around I can imagine would be difficult too, although from time to time I do see blind people walking around streets, and they seem to be able to get by alright.
In comparison, losing my hearing I don’t think would be as bad. With my sight still intact I would still be able to watch videos with subtitles, read books, browse the internet, watch the sun rise, see all the autumn leaves falling or the flowers appearing in spring. Music I would definitely miss, although to be honest, I wouldn’t miss listening to people talking with strong over exagerated Aussie accents :) Essentially, I believe I could manage easily enough. But I can imagine it would be lonely at times though.
Touch would be another difficult one to lose. My biggest concern about losing my touch would be hurting myself and not being able to feel it. In which case, it would mean switching to less strenuous lifestyle without doing to much physical activity that may cause harm.
Losing my taste wouldn’t be so bad. It would mean no longer being able to enjoy certain types of food, but would be a benefit in that healthy food would then be just as enjoyable as junk food. As a result I could easily switch to most healthiest diet of all without any junk food cravings.
Smell I don’t think would be a serious loss either. Especially when being around a few people I know, who I don’t think take their hygeine too seriously. Without smell I would probably end up using a deodorant twice a day, just to be sure I wouldn’t become one of those people myself without knowing it :) I would miss many of the aromas around me such as flowers, or the sell of certain types of food. But overall there would be just as many nasty smells I wouldn’t miss. There have actually been times in my past I have lost my smell, when I’ve had a cold or flu or just a plain blocked nose. The blocked nose was of course annoying, but he lack of smell never really bothered me.
So sight I believe to be my most important sense.
Nice answer. You put your thoughts across very cogently. It makes my own opinions clearer.
Thanks Anu! Trying to do my best here :)
Touch – I wouldn’t know I existed without it. My first thought was sight but other people manage to have a good life without it so presumably I could too.
I had a huge debate between the senses sight and touch. Without sight I’d be afraid of everything around me but without touch I wouldn’t be able to let or allow others to love me and viceversa. I love seeing and touching. As I analyzed I slowly came to realize how pleasurable each sense is and how grateful I am to currently have them.
I choose sight because with sight I can contribute more to others. While I can hug with touching, without sight I wouldn’t know who I am hugging or how this person feels like. Sight would be #1 for me.
So hard to choose! I feel so blessed to appreciate all my senses on a daily basis, but if I had to choose one, I would probably choose sight. I’ve always been very visually oriented, noticing the colors and forms of things. But part of the reason I think sight is such an important sense to me is that I am a synesthete, and vision is tied to my appreciation of other senses as well. If I were not capable of vision, I wouldn’t be able to enjoy music as much.
I have to say that of my five senses, smell is the most important to me.
Smell connects me to all kinds of people and places. Always my memories are connected with a certain smell. When I visit a new country the first thing that I notice is how distinctively it smells.
I choose sense of sight as most important as it allows me to see the beautiful things in the world; and for without it, one will not be able to appreciate or experience life through the other 4 senses.
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Wow Celes, how do you come up with this stuff? And I mean that in the most positive way! This challenge is awesome!
Well I definitely appreciate all five senses. Putting one in front of the other, putting them apart is hard, but I would say SIGHT is most important to me. Because it makes me see the beauty in this world. It allows me to read, learn, see other people and simply, walk and go wherever I want.
Next would be the sense of touch. It allows us to be close and intimate with others.
Next are hearing and smell. Hearing because of beautiful sounds of life (like birds singing, raining or wind, sound of walking in the snow…), having meaningful conversations with other people, humor and music.Smell because it can affect our mood. Smell of flowers, smell of freshly prepared food, smell of perfumes. Smell of your partner’s skin :)
Taste would come last to me. Food is a great pleasure in life, but compared with all the other things, it’s less.
That said, I’m immensely to be healthy and have all the senses. They make life so enjoyable and lush.
Ivona, What you have said is also what I think about this question.
And said it so clearly and with good images.
Sight is definitely be a priority.
I think that’s an easy question for me. I’ve been asked before whether I’d prefer to be blind or deaf, and it would be deaf everytime for me. I love to walk and appreciate the beautiful countryside and fascinating views. I love to climb hills and mountains and appreciate the view from the top. Without question, my sight is the most importance sense to me as I would hate to miss out on beautiful scenery in the future, and there is so much world out there to see!
I think the most important of 5 senses blessed upon me, in order to achieve my purpose in life is the sense of sight. I choose ‘sight’ over ‘hearing’ after reflecting within self.
With the sense of sight, we can see others facial expression, body language, and other’s eyes. ( I’m aware that sometimes we can feel others energy and emotion ), but the fastest way to see others is with senses of sight.
Interpreting what I see, I can adjust my action and shape my consideration. Hearing others is equally important, after all we got a pair of ear for that, rite? :D but words can be deceiving, while I find the eyes is more honest.
So whether I wanted to help someone to achieve something together, in business, in life, etc, other’s eyes can do a lot to read their emotion. I choose senses of sight.
This is the toughest question so far, because I know it would be very hard to me accepting to lose any sense.
While the one I use more is sight, while I believe everything you learn form your taste, while smell is the first self defense tool we have, I choose touch.
Not only because in the last two years I worked as a masseur, but also because is the primary sense we use to make love.
Moreover I discovered touch as a higher form of communication than verbal.
Last, but not least, it’s well explained by the expression “keep in touch”. :mrgreen:
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