The Listening Tower

Some days the breath feels like too small a thing to hold onto. On those days, try listening instead. Sound comes to you on its own; you don’t have to do anything to receive it. Imagine you are sitting at the top of a high tower, with the whole valley of the day spread out below.

The working

1. Take your seat and let your eyes close or soften.
2. Begin with the nearest sound: your own breathing, the hum of a fridge, your clothes as you settle.
3. Let your hearing widen to the edges of the room, then beyond it: a car, a bird, wind, a neighbor’s door.
4. As each sound arrives, let it be just a sound. You don’t have to name it or decide whether you like it. Notice it begin, notice it fade.
5. If the mind starts telling a story about a sound, return to the next sound that comes. There is always another one.
6. For the last minute, listen for the quiet that sits between sounds.

Closing

Open your eyes and let the room come back slowly: first its sounds, then its shapes, then its colors.