Playing Around: Blindness or a Deft Touch?

Okay, so we've dealt with senses for the last couple of weeks, and this week is no different.  Yet it can be incredibly fun.  Again, touch is one of the senses we rely on most early in our lives, and as many new mothers know, the softness of a baby is accompanied by pains in places you didn't even know you had.  A reliance on touch--or at least an exploration of it--can be very helpful to your writing and rather amusing as well.  Consider the following:

• Looking for something.  We've all gone walking in the dark or shoved our arms deep into a bag or drawer we couldn't see well.  There's always a surprise--and it seems a Lego--awaiting us!  Whether you discuss a literal search in which you must use your sense of touch or a figurative one in which you are "feeling out" future options, the use of this sense in both your writing and your pondering can reveal unexpected sides to even the most common issues.
• Exploring something.  Whether we're holding an as-of-yet unwrapped gift, your new baby, or a lover, we rely on our sense of touch not only for revelation but also for enjoyment.  Part of our appreciation for something is revealed in how we stroke and finger it.  Take the time to put it in words and allow your reader to appreciate as you do.
• Wearing something.  Whether it's that pair of jeans that makes you feel incredible or the awesome shoes that give you blisters, the feeling of your clothing not only changes your feelings about yourself but your interpretation of how your clothes feel changes as your circumstances do (haven't you ever felt your collar tighten in a nerve-wracking situation?).  The feelings of our clothing on our bodies--and reports of that feeling--can really heighten the drama of a story when added well.