i read the other day 
if you focus on something 
for even four minutes
letting your gaze soften,

your cortisol, the hormone of distress,
needed in small doses 
but havoc producing in excess,
lowers in measurable ways.

(isn’t that amazing?)

it’s gratifying to witness proof
of the importance of instinctual things
and that taking the space to stare 
is exactly what you need. 
 
so now i advise (with evidence!)
remember to pause and stare:
at a candle, a fireplace, the gentle wave of trees. 
the sparkle of the surface or waves upon the sea. 
the ever-shifting, billowing shapes of clouds fluid
or anything such as these.

(but not the scrolling of a screen)

let your busy mind relax, 
your breath to slow, 
your muscles to unclench,
and allow your body 
to literally, chemically
recover peace.

heather pound 2026

Video by my daughter Hannah