Six days · About five minutes a day
Enough
Notice what is already enough, and let the wanting loosen its grip.
Your six days
- Notice the reaching — Free in your browser
- Leave some alone
- Ask what is missing
- Rest in what you have
- Simple things
- Count yourself rich
A taste of Day 1: Notice the reaching
Welcome. There's a quiet pull in most days, toward the next thing, the next purchase, the next improvement. Over six short days, we'll practise noticing what is already enough. Today, we simply watch the reaching.
There is no guilt greater than to sanction ambition; no calamity greater than to be discontented with one's lot; no fault greater than the wish to be getting. Therefore the sufficiency of contentment is an enduring and unchanging sufficiency.Laozi · Tao Te Ching, chapter 46
James Legge, 1891
This old line sounds stern, but the point is gentle. Wanting isn't a fault in itself. The trouble is the wish to be always getting, because it never meets a finish line. When one want is met, another steps forward in its place. So today we don't try to want less. We only notice the reach as it happens, the small lean toward the next thing, and see how often it arrives before we've looked at what we already have.
Try the reflection
Sit comfortably and let your eyes rest or close. For the next few minutes, notice any wanting that shows up: a thing, a plan, a different moment. Don't push it away and don't follow it. Just name it softly: reaching. Then return to your breath. If it becomes uncomfortable, you can stop at any time. Take three minutes.
One question to take with you
What was your mind reaching for most often?
Day 1 is free. Days 2–6 are planned for the iPhone app, coming soon. This is reflection, not medical advice.