Scents & Sights

Is there anything nicer than a good cup of coffee & a great book?

This morning I got up around 4:30am ... couldn't sleep, headed downstairs to my favourite spot, wrapped my velvet throw around my legs and feet, leaned back into the feather cushions and then curled up with my book. I sat in my living room watching the sun come up and peek through my window. As it slowly rises in the sky, it catches the prisms on my collection of Swarovski crystal and then ..... a riotous explosion of colour dances around my room. While I sit and watch this light show, my sense of smell is assaulted by the delicious scent of coffee which I had set to brew a few moments ago - freshly ground beans in a drip coffee maker.

Can you tell I'm a sensory person?

I'm back with my coffee and take the first velvet smooth sip. The flavour explodes in my mouth, waking up every taste bud and after I swallow I produce an audible "ahhhhhhh".

Now I get back to my reading. An intriguing murder mystery - ""Cold Moon" by Jeffery Deaver http://www.jefferydeaver.com/. Along with the taste of my coffee, I detect the peculiar odours associated with my book, the smell of the paper, the binding glue & the cloth that covers the book. Each one distinct, but combined together stir many fond memories of reading through the years.

My father, who is an author, taught me early in life to respect books & love literature. Many years ago he was listed in "Who's Who" for having one of the largest personal libraries in Canada. He passed that love of books along to me. I still own his original leather bound set of World Book & Childcraft - copyright 1959. It still after all these years smells like an old book store. I cannot borrow from the library, I must buy my books. In quieter moments you can usually find me with my nose buried in a book. What other "free" vehicle can we use to escape to somewhere exotic, to enjoy the beauty of the great masters of art, to learn how to install a kitchen, bathroom, etc... There is no end to the plethora of how-to books, novels, biographries, self-help, cook books, crafting books, poetry, nature books, travel books & childrens books. Who can forget "Winnie The Pooh" or "Wind In The Willows" - favourites among children for decades. Or how about C.S. Lewis, "The Lion, The Witch and The Wardrobe". Or what about "Narnia" recently made into a delightful movie.

Here is a condensation of "The Four Agreements" by Don Miguel Ruiz, one of my favourite books.

Agreement 1 .... Be impeccable with your word - Speak with integrity. Say only what you mean. Avoid using the word to speak against yourself or to gossip about others. Use the power of your word in the direction of truth and love.
Agreement 2 .... Don’t take anything personally - Nothing others do is because of you. What others say and do is a projection of their own reality, their own dream.

Agreement 3 .... Don’t make assumptions - Find the courage to ask questions and to express what you really want. Communicate with others as clearly as you can to avoid misunderstandings, sadness and drama.

Agreement 4 .... Always do your best - Under any circumstance, simply do your best, and you will avoid self-judgment, self-abuse and regret.

Would we have wars, terrosists bombings, kidnappings, murders or even school bullying if we all just lived our lives by these four simple agreements????

Let me leave you today with a quote from one of my favourite authors: The best things in life are nearest: Breath in your nostrils, light in your eyes, flowers at your feet, duties at your hand, the path of right just before you. Then do not grasp at the stars, but do life's plain, common work as it comes, certain that daily duties and daily bread are the sweetest things in life ..... Robert Louis Stevenson

Take a moment today to stop and smell the heady fragrance of newly blooming shrubs & flowers, look for the explosion of spring colours & listen to the songbirds as they wake the day.