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Attention Includes Where the Body Is
Attention can become absorbed in an idea. A sentence is forming or a problem opening, and the world around us fades. The body remains in that world.
Deep focus has value. It also narrows what we notice. We may be fully engaged with a thought and only partly aware of the chair, step, cup, door, or person beside us.
Calling every lapse a failure of character adds little. Attention has limits. The useful distinction is between being absorbed in a task and being aware enough of the physical situation to act within it. Sometimes a movement can wait for a glance or a pause.
Presence has a location. Returning attention to where the body is can also return us to what is actually happening.