You may have seen the video and maybe it touched you in a way that brought you to tears. A forensic artist sat down and asked the woman sitting on the couch next to him to tell him about her face. He opens with the question, “Tell me about your hair?” and then, “Tell me about your chin. After one woman thinks about it she says, “It protrudes a bit especially when I smile.” He continues, “What about your jaw?” Another woman answers, “My mom always told me I had a big jaw.”  He then asks, “What’s your most prominent feature?” Taking a moment, she answers “Kind of a fat rounder face” or “I would say I have a pretty big forehead.” After he got his sketch he said thank you very much and left.

He didn’t see them again. But what happened next reveals a truth we each need to hear.

A research study just came out in the Journal of Neuroscience where scientists at the University of Texas Health Science Center at Houston used sea snail nerve cells to reverse memory loss. The scientists were able to help the cells compensate for memory loss by retraining them when the nerve cells were primed for optimal learning. Of course they’re hoping this has implications for working with Alzheimer’s, but the implications don’t stop there, it could also support a neuroscience for learning to trust ourselves in times of difficulty.

Here’s another Daily Now Moment that if spread around can have tremendous ripple effects in your relationships, communities and beyond.

The ancient Greek writer Aesop left us with these words:

“No act of kindness, no matter how small, is ever wasted.”

Be on the lookout for kindness in others today. You may find more of it in the world than you think is there.

Then, try bringing more intentionality to your own acts of kindness.

We may not always get it back, but in the long run this simple practice primes your mind for good and can be life changing.

Try it out today.

Warmly,
Elisha Goldstein, PhD

Little brothers embracing photo available from Shutterstock

Find some food today with which to truly engage in mindful eating.

Please don’t let this pass you by, make it your
intention.

Eat slightly slower than normal and give yourself the chance to really taste the food.

Consider all the people and natural elements like wind, dirt, rain and sunshine that went into creating this food that is now being used as nourishment (and maybe joy).

Research has shown that our brains have a natural negativity bias, more prone to attend to what’s difficult. Take this moment to create some balance and prime your mind toward the goodness in your life.

Make this a practice and watch the ripple effects unfold.

Warmly,
Elisha Goldstein, PhD

Source: The Now Effect: How a Mindful Moment Can Change the Rest of Your Life (Launches in paperback today!).

Eating watermelon photo available from Shutterstock

Here is a mindful practice from the “Daily Now Moments” to play with today:

Take your shoes off and spend one minute feeling the sensation of the floor or earth beneath your feet.

Wherever we are provides us with a “choice point” to bring awareness to what surrounds us in the moment.

Enjoy!

Warmly,

Elisha Goldstein, PhD

Bare feet photo available from Shutterstock

We don’t have to look further than B.F. Skinner to see that most of us have developed a habit of being overly obsessed with our Smartphones. We all get incoming messages that hint at a potential reward, most of the time it’s not a reward, but sometimes it is and this is what gets us. It’s called intermittent reinforcement and it’s how Skinner made his rats keep pressing the lever hoping for more pellets of food. When it comes to our Smartphone most of us wake up with it and go to sleep with it. When it calls for us during the day we come running. If you’re interested in getting a bit of freedom from it, read this quick story of how philosopher and teacher Krishnamurti helped a student become free of irritation. You’ll see the connection.

One day, Krishnamurti was eating lunch with his students when one student got up to close the window. Krishnamurti asked why he did that and the student replied, “the sound

In a time of deep division, where the Supreme Court is looking to find an answer as to whether “same-sex” marriage should be legalized, perhaps we don’t need to look too far for the answer. Here is a 2-minute video with the intention to dispel our differences and create the experience of all people ultimately being “Just Like Me.” Take a couple moments to experience it: