ESSAY THE SPACE BETWEEN

ESSAY THE SPACE BETWEEN US Dogged by distraction, in an age of anxiety, mindfulness is the need of the hour. Where better to practice it than... in your car STORY E R I N B A K E R ILLUSTRATION J Ö R N K A S P U H L Up to eight trillion dollars. That’s the estimated loss in annual global output due to mental health issues, according to the World Economic Forum. By 2030, depression is projected to cost society more than diabetes, cancer and respiratory disorders combined. No wonder, then, that Headspace, a meditation app for beginners launched in 2014, has already been downloaded more than 16 million times. Why? Because despite being wealthier, generally healthier and living longer than ever before, humans are more stressed than ever. The internet, mobile devices that allow you to stay connected wherever you are, and the inexorable rise of social media, all enable people to reach you and delve into your privacy day and night. As a result, we suffer constant white noise, the insistent buzz of neurotransmitters in our brains dealing with incessant communication, demands, requests, debates and interaction. Edward Bullmore, neuroscientist and professor of psychiatry at Cambridge University, calls it “the chronic stress we deal with in the 21st century”– ‘chronic’ in the medical sense of constant, unsolvable. It used to be that the greatest luxury was staying connected. Futurist Gerd Leonhard opines that soon it will instead be switching off. No wonder, then, that driving still remains a pleasure for most motorists, despite the political pressure to get us out of our cars and onto public transport. The car is one of the few truly personal spaces left, and driving one of the few remaining everyday activities where you are asked to disengage from everything else, and concentrate on an activity that is both physically and mentally involving. The beauty of the car is that – unless you are unfortunate enough to have four boys who need constant ferrying, as I am – it offers an intrinsically solitary space, which I suspect is half the reason so many commuters refuse to swap their cars for public transport. You can personalise your soundtrack, climate, seating position or ambient lighting, free of interference into your space. And, as car interiors evolve into that third space beyond office and home, the car is an increasingly luxurious place in which to meditate, solve problems in silence or just empty your mind. Simple, clean, smooth surfaces that are pleasing to touch, light fabrics and pared-back design help to create a sense of calm and space, an environment conducive to practicing mindfulness. With autonomy set to increasingly feature in cars in the years to come, we will soon be able to liberate guilt-free mindspace as we crawl through traffic jams. And when the road opens up and gets twisty, the joy of driving will always remain a meaningful experience. So, whether it’s a case of sit back and relax, or feel at one with your car, remember: just breathe, and be. 78

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