Our brains take-in information (for example) sounds from inside of our home, the smell of dinner coming from the kitchen, the feelings of those who live within close proximity to us; from the colors decorating our rooms, to the arrangement of our furniture, and even from the textures of the carpeting and the upholstery of our furniture.
Here's what I've noticed about myself--
The raised, looping-textured fabric of an indoor-outdoor rug in one room of our home feels nice on my bare feet. I like to think of it as a mini (MINI!) foot massage! I can tell the different between areas tread upon frequently and those barely walked on.
Here's another: I realized my brain was taking in information from the environment way back in my college days. In the early days after I first left home to live in the girl's dorm at Western Illinois University I woke up one night from a deep sleep feeling reassured. What was so reassuring? The sound of the refrigerator! That was it! And then I thought, "I don't have a fridge in my room!" I soon realized what I was 'hearing', out of the blue, was the refrigerator back home!
Well, not really a refrigerator (at least not one I could reach over to touch) but the memory of home! My mind created a way to cope with this brand new situation in life by playing out the sound clip of the humming Kelvinator from HOME! Who knew that something so simple would bring comfort.
Life Application
As nice as these memories are, what does it all mean?
I talked about my brain waking me up from a deep sleep to play the sound clip of the family's refrigerator, but the drone of a fridge isn't all that important!
In helping dyslexics, as a Davis Dyslexia Correction facilitator, I began applying the tools used for hands-on correction of dyslexic symptoms to adult emotions. Creating the letters of our alphabet A-Z with some of my adult clients, we first make alphabet letters from non-hardening clay. My letters on one side of the table, my client's on the opposite side.
We joke, carry on delightful conversations and at the end of the alphabet making we take a short break. Afterwards we focus on some simple Davis tools, and start creating letter A.
I'd like to say from here I have an elaborate plan of attack, but truthfully at this point my clients take over. While I do ask a few questions to get things started I'm amazed at the power of their brain that supplies these adults with the answer. Not any old answer but the viable answers to their questions!
While not all things in life are that easy, this is certainly a place to begin.
We start with letter A, process through some simple tools with the clay materials and the brain begins to fill in the holes. It fills in the holes, while exposing deeply immersed items from recent or long forgotten interactions, reactions, emotions; from visions, feelings, interpretations, and an endless array of brain absorbed materials.
Any idea what may be locked inside your brain? Let's start with a little clay and see where we can go!
Cathy Henkle Cook, M. Ed.
OnPoint Learning Center, LLC
Columbia, Missouri
Empower your life with the GIFT of Dyslexia!
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