“Let me, O let me bathe my soul in colours; let me swallow the sunset and drink the rainbow.”
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. . .
Years ago at a concert, I heard about a phenomenon called chromesthesia where sounds — like music — elicit a visual experience of color for some people. And so a certain note or chord presents as a particular hue or myriad colors, shapes, and motions.
Truly fascinating.
I wonder if anyone with this sensory superpower was in the crowd that night. And if so, what must the songs have been like to them? Dazzling? Overwhelming? Did it pull them even deeper into the melodies and harmonies? Or was it too much to witness at times?
I’m fairly certain I do not possess chromesthesia or any form of synesthesia — connection of the senses.
But if I’m honest, I often behave like I do.
When I’m walking, I’m playing music. When I’m eating, I’m reading. When I’m smelling, I’m looking at something else. I’m rarely allowing one of my senses to be fully present in the absorption of a moment. And more times than not, I’m likely missing, not meeting, the world around me.
So, who knows? Maybe the pathway to greater sensory connection is greater sensory disconnection?