A Different Type of Mindful experience…..

“What senses do we lack
that we cannot see or hear
another world all around us?”
— Frank Herbert

You may think I forgot to put a proper image in this week's Mindful Musing.

However, the blackness you see IS the guiding image for today.

It is exactly what I SAW when I went to dinner with my family on Saturday.

The five of us embarked on a journey into the dark in a restaurant where we were expertly waited on by servers without any eyesight. 

I am always up for new and slightly quirky activities, so "Dans le Noir" - which translates into "In the Dark" was a welcomed experience.

Apart from my family, there were also 2 other couples at our reserved time slot. After checking in, our server Carolyn greeted us. Carolyn never had eyesight and "sees" complete darkness from one eye and a slight sensation of light in the other. She is able to say if it is dark or bright outside but cannot see any shapes. Carolyn moved around us without a guide dog or a guide stick. She told us in what order to stand behind each other and have our left hand on the shoulder of the person in front of us. Our holding on to each other was important because once we left the reception and entered the dining room, there would be only darkness. So we trundled off and through some doors and curtains, we stood behind our assigned chair. Now we knew why we had to stand in order - each couple was actually sitting opposite each other and our family sat at the head of the table, so we could all be together. 

Even sorting out that order would have overstepped my thinking capacity...

We did not even need to close our eyes (which we did at the beginning), so dark it was. 

Then Carolyn explained what was in front of us: to our right a fork and a spoon, to our left a knife and in front of us in the middle of our table a water bottle and to the left an empty water glass. Oh, my... we knew what that meant. We were told it is a good idea to have one finger inside the glass when pouring the water in order to know when the glass is full...

We managed ok with the water - I was so happy I had not ordered a bottle of red wine to share like my husband and sons had. Thomas came straight from work with his starched white shirt on...

What attracted me to the experience was the use of our senses in a different way. As you might know by now, Mindfulness is all about paying attention in a particular way - on purpose, in the present moment, and non-judgmentally - as defined by Jon Kabat-Zinn.

Almost 50 percent of our brain is said to be involved in visual processing, and although we have five senses, 70 percent of all sensory input comes through the eyes - in seeing people. Our eyes are so good (and so much better developed than the rest of our senses) that we can grasp a visual scene in less than 1/10 of a second.

So, we rely heavily on sight and because that is working so well for most of us, we do not champion the other 4 senses all that much. Let's not even speak of our trust in our sixth sense...

By practicing using the other senses, we make our world richer, more colourful, and safe - metaphorically speaking. 

Carolyn told us the sense she relies on is her hearing. She hears when we are standing up. 

One thing I was not prepared for was the rising experience of fear, once I entered the dark room. I would say I am pretty courageous; I trusted the organisers and I was with the people I love. Yet I was fearful. I could feel my heartbeat quicken. I suspect my menopausal me has a lot to answer for, making me more susceptible to anxiety than ever before. I think that my brain fired warning signs because my main portal to sensing my environment which I had used for over 50 years was suddenly closed. Our grown-up kids were simply delighted about this new experience and joyfully dug into the excellent food - mostly with their hands - because you FEEL so much more. We were not told what was on the menu, by the way - it was so fun to guess what we were eating. The Japanese-inspired food was divine. 

We loved our conversations and I loved that my daughter held my slightly sticky hand once in a while to comfort me. To make it clear - I really enjoyed the experience and I would do it again in a heartbeat. In fact, our travel-enthused family decided, we want to do the "Dans the Noir" in all of the eleven countries it currently operates from. I take that. 

What the experience also brought was an even greater appreciation for how blind people navigate in our world of "see-ers". I do wonder who "sees" more though.

Ever tried to put toothpaste on in the dark? 

My invitation to you today:

• Aim to do a task today by not using one of your "usual" senses and explore how your other senses may support you. You may be surprised how very present you will be in that moment.

This is your time. 

By the way - Thomas' white shirt was still spotless - even though the bottle of wine was empty!

With the utmost respect for those who see without their eyes

Yours kindly

Mel