Looking Closely has become a daily practice over the last few weeks. As I search the garden, my attention heightens as I hunt for cherry tomatoes and green beans. Pulling back the leaves and finding these vegetables in the bundles of greenery is a gift for upcoming meals, but it is also a clear reminder that Looking Closely is a practice, and when we look closely, we see things clearly.

Looking Closely reveals the texture of the thing. When we are inches from the tiny tendril, we see it, the circling shape isn't lost in the other elements. Without Looking Closely, we miss so much and see what is within our minds already. Looking Closely brings us immediately into the present, it is an act of mindfulness with our eyes and mind wide open.

Craig Mod, a photographer and writer explains the importance and power of paying close attention in his essay on Looking Closely, “What’s wild about focused attention is that the act of observation is implicitly timeless. A little dose of time travel. To look closely you must be present. And the more present you are, the more you move outside the boundaries of time."

What I'm finding is I get a little lost in the natural twists and turns of plant growth when I'm Looking Closely. These fleeting curls of the tendrils unravel the next day, the twists of the flower unfold, but I remember the intricacies. So, I look closely daily, in search of the morphing shapes of the garden.

Bonus: Check out this short video (which showcases a cell turning into a salamander) that is highlighted in Mod’s essay. It is bonkers.