3.2: Mindfulness Practice
take a pause, come back to your breathing, and embody your arms, hands, and fingers. Proceed with the intention to practice Knowing the Other by setting a date with a fingerspelling comrade. Practice the above handling of mistakes, sustaining eye contact and placement of the hand with RS #1 Months and RS #2 Holidays. Hopefully, there’s a level of familiarity with these fingerspelled words so you can open your peripheral vision and more easily catch them receptively as you maintain eye contact. When you finish your practice session, answer the questions below:
Body/Feeling
1. Practicing the eyeblink can feel a little goofy at first. Were you able to handle mistakes by you and your partner with an eyeblink?
2. How did it feel to maintain eye contact with your partner for a sustained period? Was it natural? In hearing culture eye contact is not continually maintained so this fingerspelling habit may take time to develop as we remind ourselves to come back when our eyes break away.
Mind/Environment
- Was the location of the hand off the shoulder maintained or was it adjusted to suit the needs of your partner?
- What environments might it be important to always correct our fingerspelling errors?