I think that one of the most valuable things I have done for myself is meditation. I had heard of the practice and read some about it. When we took 40 students to Europe on Semester Abroad in 1974, I learned that three of the group had worked with someone from Maharishi University to learn the practice. I could see that the Quaker practice of sitting in silence was somewhat similar to the method taught by that University and by both visiting Indians and American teachers.
Reading and taking psychology courses in graduate school pointed me to short practices rather than the longer sessions described by people like Jack Kornfield and Larry Rosenberg. There are books explaining the value of eight minutes of meditation. The shortest sessions I read about were described by the former Google engineer, Chade Meng-Tan, in his book "Joy on Demand", where he mentions a single, conscious breath.
I have found that for myself, ten seconds or 4 minutes, dropping any thoughts about any worries or excitement or hope or fears and just concentrating on long, slow breaths, more or less gives me calm, appreciation, and joy just about continuously.
https://sites.google.com/view/kirbyvariety1/how-to-meditate/meditation-presentatiion
