In honor of the holidays, I’m sharing my five-senses portrait of the holiday season, by noting some of my most memorable sensory experiences.
I already did a different version of this exercise with my sister Elizabeth. Together we created a “Five-Senses Portrait of Kansas City Christmas.” It was such a fun thing to do together—reminiscing, choosing the most evocative associations, swapping funny stories.
I printed out a copy of this “portrait” on heavy paper and plan to put a copy in everybody’s stocking. It’s a great memento of family life.
Creating a five-senses portrait is an enjoyable family activity, makes a thoughtful gift, and can help you capture a meaningful moment in time for your Five-Senses Journal.
No surprise, research shows that recalling happy memories from the past is a good way to boost happiness in the present—and this exercise is fun, manageable, and surprisingly satisfying.
Onward,
5 Things Making Me Happy
Seeing—Recently I was summoned to jury duty. As my fellow prospective jurors and I waited in a huge room to see if we’d be called, snow started to fall. Even though we were a bunch of strangers, we all began to nudge each other to say, “Look, look, snow!” I love to watch snow falling, and it gave that long afternoon a distinctively holiday feeling.
Hearing—I’ve read Susan Cooper’s masterpiece The Dark Is Rising at least twenty times, but I’ve never thought of reading it day by day, following the story on the calendar. This approach makes sense, because the novel’s story is very much shaped by the approach of Midwinter’s Day and Christmas. Also, I’ve never thought of listening to the audiobook version. I can’t wait to listen to the podcast on BBC Sounds.
Smelling—During the holidays, two sides of my nature come into conflict. The under-buyer side says, “Why buy paper-white narcissus flowers? They just fade and die.” The five-senses-loving side says, “You love the look and the smell of paper-white narcissus flowers! Celebrate the pleasures of this season!” Given that my book Life in Five Senses came out just a few months ago, perhaps it’s not a surprise that this year, I did buy the flowers. I’ve been delighting in their sharp, distinctive (and, I must admit, somewhat controversial) scent.
Tasting—Every year, I host a drinks-and-sweets holiday party for my two children’s-literature reading groups. Each year, I say, “If it’s fun for you, and it’s easy, please feel free to bring a kidlit-themed dessert.” This year, we ate sugar cookies in the shapes of pigs, in honor of Paul Zindel’s The Pigman; a cake displaying the words “Eat Me” in honor of Lewis Carroll’s Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland; homemade raspberry cordial in honor of L. M. Montgomery’s Anne of Green Gables; and shortbread cookies decorated to look like fruits with holes in them, in honor of Eric Carle’s The Very Hungry Caterpillar. I usually don’t eat sugar, but I did take some tastes.
Touching—When she was very young, Eliza made a Hanukkah menorah using metal bolts (to hold the candles) and wooden blocks carefully painted in bright colors. Each year, when I unpack it from its box and hold it in my hands again, I remember how proud she was of her artistry. The days are long, but the years are short.
This week on Happier with Gretchen Rubin
PODCAST EPISODE: 461
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