I love that word. Voyeur. Someone who enjoys looking at things so much that it can become a fetish. Do you think a voyeur looks at things from a different perspective? What does a voyeur think when they are looking? Do they feel a certain energy when they look? Is that a bad thing? NO! A voyeur looks at things with a beginner's mind.
Note: I didn't say he is a beginner. Very different. Let's picture an alien on our planet, an actual beginner to Earth. With all the UFO stuff coming out of the government lately, this one isn't too hard to picture. *wink wink* An alien would land in New York city and everything they would see would be unique. They may look at the concrete for hours. Each person would be interesting, and different. They would walk slowly, taking in every aspect spectacularly. Compare this to your average New Yorker, who walks with their sense of smell, touch, taste, sound, and sight as limited as possible. Trying hard not to interact with anything so they can get to their destination.
This mindset, where you learn to look at things as if for the first time, is a magnetic way to bring you into the present moment. When you are REALLY looking at something, you have to be in the present moment. When you truly stop to taste your food, you'll notice so many more subtle qualities that will propel your senses into the present. We can embody the present by sensing the present.
The more senses we recruit to the now, the more easily we can drop into the bliss that is available to us in every second. Think about a time when you were truly immersed in an experience. How many senses can you name from that moment? Being immersed in the moment is not something that happens TO you. It is a mindset that you cultivate.
INSPIRED ACTION: Find a partner for this exercise. A romantic partner would be fun, but it's not necessary. If you're alone, use a mirror. Find a well-lit area and set a timer for 5 minutes. In this time, I want you to explore their face, as if you have never seen it before. Try not to talk, so you can focus on observing. Ask yourself what an alien would notice about their face. Try to find something you've never seen before. Get a different angle if you want to. Ask permission to use any of your other senses to explore their face. What does their hair smell like? How soft is their cheek? At the end of the time journal about how this perspective felt different. Did it make you feel closer to that person? How did you feel while observing? Ask them how they felt to be watched.
