WHEN MY KIDS were little, surprise, delight, and awe crossed their faces a dozen times a day. Any number of occurrences would leave them wide-eyed with amazement-a sudden rainstorm, a squirrel running up a tree, the sunset. I recall my son's entire pre-K class staring, slack-jawed, as their teacher released butterflies they'd grown from caterpillars into the gray New York sky.
Today, when I suggest we head to the same park where they once marveled at the ducks, my tweens shrug and turn back to their books or video games. I'm not much better. When I wander through spaces that once brought me awe, like the park or a museum, I'm often making mental to-do lists or answering emails on my phone. The only emotion I'm aware of in those moments is anxiety. It's funny when you think about it: "Awesome" is a word grown-ups throw around all the time, such as after a dreaded meeting is canceled. But how many of us regularly feel actual awe?
Positive psychology researchers want us to find it again. They're making the case for the power of awethe physical, psychological, and emotional benefits it offers. Even if you're long past the age of 6, you can cultivate it in your mind (which is absolutely still fertile ground for awe!) and reap its rewards. The key, for those of us with myriad responsibilities and an earned world-weariness that can inure us to the charms of our surroundings, is to seek it out in big, amazing experiences and learn to find it in small ones. According to research, you can and should make a habit of that second one. Yep, every day.
This story is from the Anti-Aging edition of Real Simple.
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