15 Second Contemplation

June 2, 2026

Occasionally something comes up and people say, “that was a a keeper,” [1].  Well today’s blog is about a new learning I came upon several years back. It’s so simple that it’s become one of my keepers.  A 15 second contemplative keeper. Perhaps it might become one of yours too.

My keeper has been very helpful to me in this time in which basic understandings about kindness, caring, empathy, and sharing are being disregarded.  You know, those basic rules we learned in kindergarten that help us to get along with one another.

I rely on my keeper more and more these days as it seems that these basics of human civility and decency are being mocked and undermined by some leaders’ behaviours. 

For some reason the millennia-old Golden Rule that we treat people the way that we want to be treated has been tossed aside by some members of our society.   As are the foundational beliefs that all people are equal and that each person is made in the image of God, (Genesis 1:26).

My15 second contemplative keeper is one way that I hold onto the goodness of the world in the face of the recent dramatic shifts in how some people look at human and other life. 

I first learned about my 15 second keeper from Jane Garland, a friend, author, and child psychiatrist, [2]. Jane often said that our brains are wired to focus on problems and negative experiences-- like Velcro, while positivity and happiness slip out of our brains, like they’re slipping off a Teflon pan. While Jane didn't say so, she was probably citing the neurological researcher Rick Hanson who calls this the Velcro/Teflon Model of the Mind, [3].

So how do we humans with brains that have the tendency to hold onto bad experiences, fear and other negatives, cling onto the "slippery" positives? Rick Hanson’s studies show that our brains are better at holding onto gratitude and happy experiences through contemplation, [4].

Sometime in the future I will write a more detailed blog about contemplation, but for now, I want to share about this simple practice of 15 second contemplation. This contemplative practice, based on Hanson's studies, [5] has been recommended by the Franciscan priest and author Richard Rohr.

Rohr invites us to imprint the positives we encounter onto our brains by savouring them for a conscious fifteen seconds (or more), [6].

The 15 seconds in which we ponder positives such as birds' feathers, deep connections between friends, moments of kindness and so forth, can move us into gratitude, awe, and wonder, [7].  

I’ve found that contemplating for a full 15 seconds on the positives I’ve witnessed or experienced isn’t difficult if I have time and don’t have a lot of other life pressures.

It's easiest when I’m on holidays and/or when I consciously set aside time for gratitude, prayer, and reflection. 

However, I find this practice difficult when my life is overly full. 

In times of busyness I can easily fall into my old patterns-- my neurological system returns to its original ways—holding onto fear, worry, and other negatives. 

And then I get frustrated with myself since there is so much negative swirling around right now.

When this happens, I find that this practice of spending 15 seconds contemplating on something that is good or beautiful can bring me back into balance. It can be grounding.

So, I invite you to consider rewiring your brain by taking regular 15 second positivity contemplative breaks.  

And if you, like me, sometimes find it challenging to stop during the day then perhaps you can take 15 seconds to remember a positive or two just before bedtime. Or in the morning before getting out of bed.

Anyone who’d like to deepen your contemplative experience could also integrate the 15 second contemplation into a daily gratitude or examen practice. Here’s a link to my blog on the examen, or "examination of life" practice if you’d like a review: https://www.vancouverspiritualdirection.com/single-post/spirituality-for-chaotic-times-the-examen.

1. “Yes, that was a keeper” is the last sentence in Joyce Sutphen’s poem The Book of Hours.  See:  https://www.yourdailypoem.com/listpoem.jsp?poem_id=30

2. Jane Garland wrote helpful children and teen’s books to teach them, their parents and professionals how they can manage their anxiety.  For example:  E. Jane Garland and Susan L. Clark, Taming Worry Dragons, 4th Edition, Mood and Anxiety Disorder Clinic, B.C. Children’s Hospital, Vancouver, B.C., 2009.

3. Rick Hanson, Hardwiring Happiness: The New Brain Science of Contentment, Calm, and Confidence, Harmony Crown Publishing Group, New York, NY, 2013, xxvi.

4. Ibid.

5. Richard Rohr with Mike Morrell, The Divine Dance: The Trinity and Your Transformation, SPCK Publishing, London, UK, 2016, 116.

6. Ibid.

7. Here’s the link if you would like to return to my September, 2025 blog on Awe and Wonder: https://www.vancouverspiritualdirection.com/single-post/awe-and-wonder

   
   

This blog is dedicated to Maureen Fowler, a beloved spiritual mentor.