There is something thrilling about waking up to a new landscape. Once it was unexpected snow in Flagstaff. More recently, it was the first blush of dawn on a snow-capped peak near the Oregon border. I can become mesmerized by the ever-changing scene outside my window when I travel.

Train travel affords a fresh perspective offering views not seen by car or plane. The very edge of a lake, the thick of a forest, lily pads and yellow marsh flowers and back behind the barns. It is not always scenic but often interesting.

In daily life it can be challenging to have a fresh perspective. We walk the same paths, drive the same routes lost in our thoughts, consumed by our to-do lists or some problem that needs sorting. The fact that a Facebook group called View from YOUR Window has such a following is evidence that I am not alone in valuing a new vista.

Sometimes a walk can provide it. I love walking through my eclectic neighborhood or a nearby historic park that was once the first nursery west of the Mississippi. Getting even the smallest bit of exercise makes me feel righteous. I have strengthened my bones! I have stretched my recalcitrant muscles! My routes are full of interesting plants, cute houses, and acrobatic squirrels.

But I may not always see them as I focus on what’s happening in the book playing in my ears or get lost in thought.

Not long ago, I was challenged by a health app to take part in a photo scavenger hunt as I walked. Each day for a week there was a goal. Take a photo of something red. Take a photo of a W.

I realized later that I really enjoyed searching for just the right photo. I examined my surroundings more intently; I had never before noticed so many spots of red. The letter W was a surprising find. The search enriched my walks and became something to which I looked forward.

So in the interest of promoting mindfulness – the practice of being firmly planted in the moment – I challenge you to a photo scavenger hunt. Walk each day for 5 days and take a photo of something red, the letter P, something old, something new, something that brings you joy.

Do it for your own pleasure and practice. But if you want kudos, send the photos to me and we’ll enjoy it together.