Your mother always told you to slow down and taste your food. That’s great advice, especially when we find ourselves grabbing a quick snack on run or eating a meal while driving. How we eat says as much about us as what we choose to eat.

We can learn a great deal by paying attention to our eating habits. Our appetites change depending on our moods. If we’re depressed, we may eat more than usual or we may lose our appetite completely. When we are consumed by an emotion such as anger or sadness, we may not be aware of our eating habits at all.

Paying attention to way you eat is a great way to develop a more mindful approach to life in general. Since eating is something we do several times a day, it’s a perfect activity to pair with mindfulness. If you can choose to eat a meal alone—at work or at home—you have a perfect opportunity to create greater awareness at same time.

Ready to give it a try?

Sit in a quiet place where you will not be disturbed for several minutes. Taking time to present your food in an appealing way may be helpful for this exercise. At very least, unwrap your food and discard any packaging.

If possible, take a look at food before you put it on a plate. Spend a moment focusing on food itself—the colors, textures, and aromas. Consider nutrients in food, and focus on what it will do for your body.

Now, shift your attention to your empty plate. This is vessel that will hold food you choose to put into your body. Notice shape, size and color of plate. Take a moment to consider space that food will fill on this plate.

Best Places To Live, Enjoy Life, Start a Business, or Retire: A Novel Approach. James Clayton Napier

“Hence first principle in changing one’s character is to seek another environment, to let new forces play upon our unused chords, and draw from us a better music.” — Will Durant I was 17 and growing up in Midwestern farming community of just under 1,000. My youthful intent, looking out over cornfields of Ohio, was to find my best place on planet, move there, and stay rest of my life.

67 moves later (many of them short-term broadcasting assignments), that best place has been a bit elusive.

Ask me about geography. I’m able to reproduce maps in my mind after hundreds of hours spent looking for THE ONE PLACE that spoke its “Yes” to me. What did I, back at age 17, expect to do there once I located it? I would do best work of my life: writing, painting, taking long walks and receiving a thousand breezy notions to guide my destiny.

Over years I got out on open road whenever I could and explored Oregon coast, Jekyll Island in Georgia, Apostle Islands off Northern tip of Wisconsin, Lake Michigan’s shoreline, Sequim and Port Townsend in Washington, all over New Mexico, all over Texas, Florida, Missouri, South Dakota, Colorado.

“Well, what now?” I asked myself. “I’ve traveled nearly everywhere and still no location or city speaks to me in way I’d love to be spoken to. Surely, there’s an answer waiting for me somewhere. There must be.” Being impressed with astrology in general, I ordered one of those astro-cartography reports with planetary lines drawn across map. I looked at my “good lines,” such as Jupiter line (for prosperity), Venus line (for pleasure), Mercury line (for communication), Sun line (for vitality) and surmised, “This line-map is too vague. I’ve been on all those lines and need a lot more guidance than this is giving. I’ve been on that Venus line and felt anything but pleasure while visiting Biloxi!” The astro-cartography map left me mostly unsupported in my mission of finding my place in world.

Yes, of course, personal peace and psychological well-being are an inside job. Inside jobs can be done anywhere and shouldn’t depend on being in a certain place. Right? I also wanted to wake up each morning, however, totally taken by beauty of nature around me. And my dream has always been to be a philanthropist to others’ dreams. This requires earning more than a barely-squeaking-by broadcasting salary.