The first bite of anything tastes the best because you’re paying attention. Try paying attention to the fifth.

The first mouthful is not better food, it is better attention. By the fifth you are talking, scrolling or already planning the next thing, and the taste arrives with nobody home to receive it. Most of the pleasure available in ordinary things is lost that way rather than used up. Attention is the ingredient, and it happens to be free.

Eat one thing slowly this week with nothing else going on: no phone, no screen, no walking. Taste the fifth bite as deliberately as the first and see whether it holds up. Then try the same trick on a song, a shower or the walk to school.