I was reading this morning about a tribe in the African desert. They supposedly smuggle goods between two opposing countries. When chased by authorities at night they turn off their headlights and drive unseen into the desert.
The description which I so liked – “A man from this tribe can tell his location by the smell of the sand.”
Now, I live in the Canadian grain belt. Here we do not so much see sand as gumbo or loam or just plain dirt. After a rain, you can smell the soil. And seasoned farmers will also know the land on which they stand.
That knowledge of your location comes from familiarity with the land. Too often we live nomadic lives, never putting our feet on the soil (or as the old saying goes, our roots into the ground). Perhaps we would feel more grounded if we spent time in one place. If we learned what made for a good relationship with those around us. What caused us to deal with conflict and joy.
In that way we could find our location by the smell of the sand!