It's time to give your senses a wake-up call!

Ask yourself this question: how much of the world's beauty have you become indifferent to, caught up in the bustle and rush of day-to-day life?

Take a break from the madness, and from your smartphone, and rediscover the magic of the world around you with 5 prompts that encourage you to experience the wonder of being alive. The suggestions below are taken from Ways of Tuning Your Senses, illustrated by Shuku Nishi.

1. Compare the taste of a favourite food when eaten in different settings. Indoors or outdoors. In a restaurant or public space. In a hallway, bedroom, or even bathroom. In dazzling sunlight or by candlelight.

2. Draw a scene from a dream you can remember from childhood or the distant past. Show it to no one.

3. Learn a new knife skill: dice, julienne, chiffonade, mince. Compare the way different shapes cook and the sounds they make in the pan, and the way the cut affects the taste of the ingredients.

4. Sit very still and close your eyes. What do you hear? What sounds that you normally filter out are all around you? A ticking clock. The thrum of the refrigerator motor. A dripping faucet. Traffic on the street outside. Birds chirping.

5. Claim the morning: set your alarm an hour early and do something to set you up for the day. Read a book with your first cup of coffee. Take a walk and watch the world awake. Check your phone later.