Noticing #3
Last weekend, my wife and I flew to Los Angeles to see our son perform in a show for two nights. Along the way, I took notice of many things including:
- James Goldstein in the OKC airport (Google him).
- The expansive pastry shelf at Porto’s in Burbank complete with tarts, pies and too many delicacies to list.
- Cafe Fiore’s exquisite outdoor seating area in Ventura with carefully arranged decor on the ivy covered stone walls.
- One of the best handlebar mustaches I’ve ever seen on a weathered gentleman at the Saugus Cafe in Santa Clarita.
- The supreme acting talent and many complex layers of the performance of Danton’s Death at CalArts.
But perhaps the thing that most caught my attention was the cuteness of my wife in the airport. As we approach 30 years of marriage, I was struck by her mischievous smile and the gleam of love in her eyes. Though she has experienced more than her share of health adversity for the past 21 years, she remains full of life, love and kindness.
Travel perks up our senses. Even if you’re not traveling any time soon, take notice of your surroundings. Go granular. Beyond just noticing, drill down to see the next layer and the next. Ask yourself questions about what you witness. What else do you see? Why did this grab your attention? What other details strike you about this scene?
Noticing is readily available as free entertainment. Go granular on what you notice.
Worth Repeating
All there is to thinking is seeing something noticeable, which makes you see something you weren’t noticing, which makes you see something that isn’t even visible.
Leo Strauss
