What are we seeing, touching, and hearing?

It is really all like a dream. It is all like “Main Street” on a movie set, nothing behind. When you wonder what the word refers to, any word, things get out of focus. When you go down into the weeds, and look closely for the referent of our words, it becomes murky. In everyday parlance, we say, “of course the referent of our word is there because I can see it; because I can touch it; because I can hear it.” But what are we seeing, touching, and hearing? Is it not related to our mind? Is it not related to our preconceived ideas about the world that affect our senses? Doesn’t the mind play a role in what we see, touch, hear? Yet, things appear to be over there, on their own, independent of my mind. How can we resolve this conundrum? Maybe things appearing to exist on their own are wrong? Maybe we are deluded? Spend some time daily pondering the referent of our words. Examine closely.