If I haven’t mentioned it yet, I’m a little bit of a nerd; I like experiments. I also like games – which, I suppose makes me a little bit of a kid. I guess I’m a little bit of a lot of things. But that’s for another article.
That being said, the NerdKid within me proposes that we play an experimental game together. All you will need are two raisins. That’s right. Just two.
Obviously we won’t do it together together, because you are there and I am here. But we can kinda do it together. Unified for a moment on this platform in cyberspace.
(Note: as with all good experiments, you need to follow each direction in order to ensure the accuracy of the results).
Following these few steps, you will realize that you lived your entire life, until this very day, with no clue as to the true super-powers of a raisin.
Step 1: Retrieve two raisins from your kitchen and place them separately on the table in front of you.
I know what you’re thinking… “what in the world am I supposed to do with two raisins?” After all, I couldn’t possibly direct you to eat them, right? Swallowing a pair of raisins doesn’t even count as eating. They certainly don’t appease hunger pains and they barely leave a lingering taste. Nevermind two raisins; even those tiny red boxes chock-full of raisins disappear with little effort. No need to pretend. We all know that when you were in grade school, those boxes were the food that you searched for at the end of lunchtime before realizing that you already inhaled them without noticing. You ate them without noticing and those boxes contained a whopping total of 14 raisins. That is more than 2. It is 7x more than two.
Step 2: Eat one raisin.
Pay attention to how it tastes. Good job. You’re halfway done.
Step 3: Stare at the remaining raisin.
Normally, you wouldn’t even notice it. After all, it’s pretty tiny. But take a moment to look at it sitting there. A lone raisin in a desolate land. It remains brave and unprotected by its usual cluster of raisin companions. Let your eyes move over its wrinkles and perhaps notice the decorative granules of sugar.
Step 4: Place the raisin in your mouth and leave it there for 60 seconds.
CAUTION: Do NOT bite down on the raisin. This is the most challenging part of the experiment. Just place it gently on your tongue and let it sit. You can roll it around with your tongue if you get bored. There might be a touch of sugar on the surface of the raisin. Hardly a flavor; more like a breath of honey.
Step 5: Bite down.
This is the exciting part. If all went as planned, you should experience an explosion of sweetness. A flavor that is completely incommensurate with what that little raisin should be capable of producing. The second raisin’s taste was entirely more potent than that of the first raisin. Because you took the time to notice it. To appreciate it.
Conclusion: Single raisins are completely underrated.
It’s not only raisins that live their short lives generally under-appreciated. We are surrounded by so much stimuli throughout our days, that it’s difficult to find the time to truly taste anything.
Imagine if we could appreciate breathing that way. Picturing each inhalation of cold fresh air filling our lungs and circulating through our bodies. Each exhale as removing stale energy from within. Knowing that every breath holds the power to start over.
Imagine if we could experience the weather for all that it is. Feeling the sun on our skin and the rejuvenating power of the breeze toying with our hair.
Imagine if we were aware of the miracle of the life coursing through the veins of every leaf. If we could genuinely appreciate the beautiful sounds of autumn. Feel the shiver of the crunch as we walk through a mess of leaves.
The second raisin’s taste was entirely more potent than that of the first. Because you took the time to notice it. To appreciate it. To be present.
Flavor pulses through everyday objects and experiences. Take a moment to taste it.
The little things in life are delectable.
(Image by Stuart Webster)