A professional association for lawyers in the UK announced in November that it will “offer facilities” for members to practice mindfulness, following a trend in legal circles throughout the UK and abroad. British Parliament has offered mindfulness training for members since 2014, as does Swedish Parliament. The American Bar Association advocates for the practice, even publishing a book about it in 2016.
Sipping on mindfulnessWhat would you do for a cup of tea? San Francisco’s Samovar Teahouse offers “mindfulness tea” at no charge, if you agree to drink it mindfully. That means no using your phone and no chatting, and simply sipping for 60 whole minutes. Owner Jesse Jacobs, a longtime meditator, says he sees it sparking curiosity around mindfulness, though not all customers are eager to dive in and try it. “As a social experiment, it’s brought people’s consciousness up to the challenge,” says Jacobs, “so they can start by asking, Why is this practice difficult for me?”
Stacked rocks: a not-so-mindful clichéA go-to symbol for mindfulness, meditation, and all things contemplative, stacked rocks may not be so mindful after all. This seemingly benign, Instagram-friendly activity can have destructive effects on sensitive ecosystems.…