I know it sounds cliche, but it's so important to notice the world around you.

When we're children, there is absolutely nothing internal inhibiting us from appreciating the world. We have not yet learned how to be stressed or anxious or how to tune out our surroundings. We are constantly faced with a million different sensory stimulations. We notice every color, every sound, every feeling and we absorb and react to that. It's like everything is amplified and feeds us the energy to enjoy things like running around barefoot in the grass, swinging on a swing. Everything is important to us and therefore everything is enough.

As we grow older, we learn to only notice the practical things. Less and less are we noticing how red the sunset is and how bright the stars are; more and more we become tunnel-visioned. We absorb less, we feel less, we only look forward. And yes, looking forward is good. Seeing something, working for it, being ambitious and sometimes forgetting the little things is natural. But still, we are constantly looking forward, and it's time to look around.

Maybe that means you talk a 15-minute walk in the park by your house or you watch the sunset every night. Maybe it means you write down something beautiful you've noticed every day. I'm not sure what it means for you, but as long as you're aware, mindful, noticing and absorbing, you're doing it right.

Mindfulness has been proven to decrease stress, improve clarity and mental health, and increase happiness. And while mindfulness is not something you can achieve instantly, it's easy to start trying. It all starts with noticing. Notice how soft your sheets are, notice the sound of the rain, notice yourself beginning to notice things.

Yes, it's cliche, but that doesn't make it any less important.