"Each action — cleaning utensils, choosing ingredients, handling food, and cooking — can be done with full attention and awareness. To accomplish this requires letting go of the rational mind and allowing the power of the moment to fill us up. Whenever this happens we feel our aliveness, with all our senses able to operate freely and clearly. Simply by stating our intention to bring attention and focus to a meal, we are like the Zen cook who, according to Zen master Dogen, 'tries to build great temples from ordinary greens.' Food — because of its life-sustaining nature — is a natural doorway into the state of mindfulness. To enter, we need only awaken to the moment."

To Practice: Pick one of these activities and do it with full attention. What benefits do you receive from this act of attention?