sun_set_bravely | June 5th. Exhale. Cascade.

The event is done. I feel twenty pounds lighter today. There will be the inevitable clean-up and follow-up, but the event is done. People were happy. Money was raised. Donors were cultivated. All of this is good. A few people even recognized how much hard work (oh, 70% of the event) we did in the office, and genuinely thanked me. I'm glad that they realize. It's important.

I'm looking forward to answering some good questions this weekend. I want to give each question its proper time, since they are all so thoughtful.

My other task for this weekend is to format the screenplay. We're about to get paid. I'm pretty excited about that.

~ ~ ~

Sense #1:
Yesterday morning, I woke up before my alarm with my mind already racing over ticket issues and possible problems. I was finally able to stop myself, take a deep breath, and release my busy-thoughts. As I did, I became aware of the sound of a gentle rain outside. The rain helped me relax even more. My mind was so tight that my other senses contracted so much that I didn't know what was going on around me. This came as a small epiphany to me. What else am I missing because of a closed-fist brain, or heart?

Sense #2:
I'm wearing my new fragrance today. I haven't worn fragrance on a daily basis in several years, and when I needed to freshen a stale-smelling dress the other day, I used my old favorite body spray (Freesia from Victoria's Secret), and found that it evoked old, stale memories from as far back as high school. I realized it was time for me to find a new scent.
A few days later, I cleaned out my room and lit a candle my mother bought me for Christmas. I read a chapter on scent, and how it is so often neglected, in the book my stepmother gave me for Christmas, Romancing the Ordinary. I looked at the candle and chose my scent right there. Luckily, the company that makes the candle also makes body lotion and soap. I ordered it, and it came today. I love the scent; it smells natural, light, and a little bit like sunscreen. At first, I thought, "I'm crazy. I'm putting on a lotion that smells like sunscreen." Then I stopped judging myself and started enjoying it. It smells like summer, and light. It makes me happy.

I'm waking up my senses. One by one.