November is a month that tickles our senses.  Delicious tastes of holiday traditions, the smells of fragrant fall spices, the sounds of crunching leaves, and the caress of breezes hinting of winter to come…

Alexandra Horowitz, in her book On Looking: Eleven Walks with Expert Eyes, reminds us:

“To a surprising extent, time spent going to and fro–walking down the street, traveling to work, heading to the store or a child’s (or one’s own) school–is unremembered.  It is forgotten not because nothing of interest happens.  It is forgotten because we failed to pay attention to the journey to begin with.  On the phone, worrying over dinner, listening to others or to the to-do lists replaying in our own heads, we miss the world making itself available to be observed.  And we miss the possibility of being surprised by what is hidden in plain sight right in front of us.”

November’s photo-a-day challenge is an invitation to pay attention by “seeing” through your other senses.  How can you capture taste, smell, sound, or touch in a photo?

Each week we will focus on a different sense.  Feel free to interpret the prompt in the broadest possible way.  Be playful and creative…and most of all, have fun!

Be sure to post your photo each day to Instagram, Twitter, Facebook, Google+, or Flickr using the hashtag #sdawpphotovoices.  (You can post anywhere, but if you want others to be able to follow your photos, Instagram and Twitter are best!)

November 1-8: taste

November 9-15:  sound

November 16-22: touch

November 23-30: smell

I can’t wait to see what we all come up with!  You might also want to reflect on what you learned with each sense and curate your favorite photos.  It would make a great blog post!  Be sure to provide a link to your blog post in the comments below.

Here’s a preview entry from my time in our school’s garden today:

Young arugula will soon find its way into a #tasty salad.

You are invited to post every day, once a week, or whenever you can find the time.  Join in the fun!  November is a great month to begin! (or begin again!)