No time to meditate? No problem!

Look, I’ll be honest – if you want to increase your capacities of concentration and mindfulness, you’ll have to, at some point, sit down and do some serious practice. Just as there’s no substitute for doing physical exercise for getting your body in shape, so there’s no substitute for actual meditation for getting your attention “in shape”.

At the same time, I recognize how crazy busy many of you are. You have great difficulty in finding even 10 or 15 minutes in your day to practice. I get it. That’s why I’m offering this series of 2-minute practices, which you might consider the equivalent of a walk around the block – it won’t do much but it’s better than nothing.

Today’s practice is super easy: when you come face to face with someone outside your home today, check out their eyes. Make eye contact, yes, but also notice something about their eyes. What colour are their eyes? Are they a little bit bloodshot, or are the whites of their eyes clear and bright? Do they have bags under their eyes? Any wrinkles, like crows’ feet? Laugh lines? How tired do their eyes look? How warm and receptive are their eyes?

Our eyes can say a lot about what we’re living through. It’s amazing what you’ll see when you actually look for even 15 seconds. (I’m not suggesting you stare and make them uncomfortable, btw)

That’s it! That’s the whole practice. Find someone like a server, a salesclerk, a cleaner, a bus driver, someone sitting beside you on a park bench or across from you in a meeting or on Zoom. Say hello. Then make eye contact (which you probably would do anyway) but then also really LOOK at their eyes. Really see them.

If only for a few seconds, really see their eyes. It will be a good mindfulness practice for you, and it will make them feel seen, maybe for the first time that day.