If sitting, find a position that embodies dignity, keeping the spine straight and let your shoulders drop. Allow your back to adopt a dignified posture, neither stiff nor tense but comfortable.    Allow your hands to rest on your lap to support the weight of your arms and shoulders.  Ensure your feet are flat on the floor so you are supported, and your legs are uncrossed.  Use your posture to support intention to be awake and aware.

Allow your eyes to close if it is safe to do so and feels comfortable for you.  Or lower your gaze so it falls unfocused a few feet away from you.

Take a few moments to settle, to become still.  Take three smooth and continuous breaths if that is helpful to you, setting your intention for your mind to be alert and your body relaxed.

As you engage with the practice, gently remind yourself that you are not trying to change the way you are feeling; not even to become more relaxed or calm. We’re not striving for anything special to happen or feel any particular sensation. 

The intention is to spend time with each region of the face cultivating a sense of what is already here – like checking the weather - without trying to judge it or change it in anyway.  

Whenever the mind wanders away as it will tend to do, bring it back to your intention without giving yourself a hard time.

So now..

1. Deliberately focus your attention on your forehead. Scan this region with your 'mind's eye', either horizontally (between your hairline and your eyebrows) or vertically (across your forehead from left to right, including your temples).  What sensations are here?  What is the temperature like on your skin?

2. See if you can feel your eyebrows from the inside - can you determine where they start or stop? Are there more sensations toward the middle of your brows or more toward the outsides? If you can't feel any sensations at all, slowly raise your eyebrows up and down. Focus on the sensations in your eyebrows as you move them, then stop moving them and focus your attention on them. Keep your focus on your eyebrows, even if sensations are weak or absent.

3. Now attend to your eyes and the region of your face around your eyes, including your eyelids, lashes and the small muscles around the outsides of your eyes. Can you sense these muscles dropping, relaxing or feeling tight and tense? Focusing your attention on your eyes themselves, do they feel dry or watery? Are they sore or tired? If you would like to, try some mindful blinking.

4. Move your attention to your cheeks and ears. Can you detect sensations in the fleshy part of your cheek? Can you feel your cheek bones? What can you notice about the sensations on the insides and outsides of your cheeks - focus on one cheek and then the other, observing how you need to shift (orient) your attention to one side or the other.  Release and relax the muscles that lie just below your ears, where your jaw begins, allowing your mouth to open slightly if this feels natural.

5. Deliberately move your attention to your mouth and chin. What different textures can you notice inside your mouth?  Can you detect any difference in the hard sensations of your teeth contrasted with the soft sensations from your tongue and lips?  And then move your attention to outside of your mouth? Can you notice where the inside portion of your lips becomes the outside portion?  Where is there moisture? Dryness? 

6. Finally, move your attention to your nose. Can you feel the air coming in and out as you breathe?  Can you notice any difference in temperature of the air as you breathe in and out?  Cool and dry as you breathe in, warm and moist as you breathe out.  Can you sense any movement in your nostrils?  What about the outside parts of your nose?  The tip of your nose?  The sides of your nose?

Finish the exercise by paying attention to three smooth continuous breaths, then open your eyes if they have been closed.  Feel free to bring movement back into your body by wriggling your toes or fingers, having a stretch or yawning.  

Reflect on any sensations you noticed or mind wandering you experienced.  Did you notice where your mind went? Were there any feelings or emotions that came up?  And were you able to bring your attention back to the exercise with kindness?

And now proceed with your day mindfully, deliberately choosing what you want to do next.

Next time  – Be Curious…

In this exercise you deliberately moved your attention around the face. Next time, try moving your attention from the bottom of your face to the top, or from the left to the right, or even from the front to the back (travelling from your face through your head and brain to the back of your head). The aim is to train your attention to go where you want it to go.