sense [sens]
any of the faculties, as sight, hearing, smell, taste, or touch, by which humans and animals perceive stimuli originating from outside or inside the body; the recognition of something as incumbent or fitting; a mental discernment, realization, or recognition; acuteness
Synonyms include: wits, reasons, common sense

Everyone has their 5 senses, as defined above. In layman's terms, your senses allow you to recognize sensations based on what you see, hear, smell, taste or touch. There are times, however, when life calls for senses beyond what our innate abilities can provide. In times like those, I have another five senses to depend on. They're called Cecile, Iya, Rochelle, Ate Tin-Tin and Riann.
Cecile, for the 13 years that I've known her, has sort of been my “6th sense” actually. Being that she's psychic and all, she tends to know a lot of what I’m feeling or thinking without me really saying much or anything at all. We could be riding a ski lift in Tahoe, walking around London eating our fish 'n chips, dancing in the rain in NYC, climbing up Swiss hills, jumping around Italy or just be sitting in her room - I don't have to say more than a few words (if any at all) for Cile to just know whether she needs to hug me, laugh with me or bop me upside the head. Aside from being my #1 advocate for travel, she's also the voice of my subconscious, begging me not to be afraid to know what makes me happy and then doing it. Iya (who I’ve known for 16 1/2 years) and I have literally seen each other through almost everything; loved ones passing, heartbreaks occurring (and sometimes recurring), *NSYNC fanaticism, friendships (including ours) changing, and yes, we’ve fought a few times. But she’s one of the unique people in my life who isn’t afraid to say something to my face, even if she thinks it might hurt me. She would rather I know the truth and grow stronger because of it, than be the fool who goes about knowing less than everyone else. She’s also the reason I stay awake at work, seeing as to how we spend more time emailing each other than actually working!
Rochelle is my twin. We met at a family party when we were 5 then somehow ended up in the same high school together! People tend to confuse us for one another because we're...petite, but don’t let her cute and happy-go-lucky façade fool you. This girl is pretty fearless (except when it comes to alcohol. She wants nothing to do with it.), and she’s gifted with this determined, tenacious spirit and personality that I often cannot fathom. In addition to that, she’s got a heart way bigger than she appears to be and the fact that she’s always so sympathetic and supportive keeps people like me who run to her, nice and sane.

Ate Tin-Tin is my 2nd mom (not that I think you’re old, Ate.). She’s too involved in every aspect of my life for me to just call her my friend, and the gentle, but firm way about her tells me she's not just the big sister I've always looked up to. There is just a comfort that she provides when I’m around her. If ever I shared the same brain with someone, or could call someone my soulmate in life, it would be Ate. She will scarcely tell me what I want to hear, or even what she thinks I need to hear. When I've finally arrived at the solution to whatever problem I was ranting about, she just hugs me and says, "See, I knew you knew that already. You just needed to figure it out. You're gonna be just fine." And I actually believe that I Will be because she said so.

Riann is like the little sister you never wanted but are forced to love anyway because she was born. Hahaha! Just kidding, Babygirl! I really and truly couldn’t do without Riann. She has become an amalgam of Cile’s intuitiveness, Iya’s straightforwardness, Rochelle’s sympathetic nature, and Ate’s nurturing encouragement when I’ve needed it the most. I feel bad when she’s had to figure things out for me because I’m too afraid to deal with it myself. She breaks it down for me (might as well do a power point presentation the way she makes her argument sometimes!), helping me discern the lines which have been blurred by cowardice and frustration. When she’s not getting me through a crisis, she’s in yoga class cracking me up, at mass praying with me, or at our favorite place, Maui Wowie shooting the breeze.

If I ever lost one of these senses, life would be an impossible force to reckon with.