Raisins and Writing

As part of treatment for some cognitive problems, I have been taught a skill called "mindfulness." Mindfulness originated in Buddhism and has recently been adopted by psychologists/psychiatrists as a therapy technique. One aspect of mindfulness is to observe. An exercise that is given is to take a single raisin, observe how it looks and feels between your fingers, then put it in your mouth. Roll it around in your mouth, taking time to notice its texture, then bite into it. Be aware of the "pop" when the skin breaks, of the juices that flow into your mouth, and of the way it feels as you chew it. Studying this kind of detailed observation has made me much more a tune to things going on around me. I am much more aware of my environment in general, and when I look at things specifically, I am much more detail-oriented in my quest for information. I try to ask myself a lot of questions and take my thinking beyond what is written in the text.

I love to write. It is one of the ways I take my natural observations a step further into analysis. It is my foundational form. I require nothing more than a pen and paper, which I always keep on hand. With it, I can analyze other media sources such as film, literature, dance, and music and in so doing, create the new media piece that is formed by the words I write on the page.