When I started taking French classes, in seventh grade, we would often play games to help us learn our vocabulary. One game that we liked to play involved the teacher sticking index cards with the French words on the whiteboard. The class would be broken into two teams, and one person from each team would go up to the board at a time. These two people each got a flyswatter, and stood with their backs to the board. The teacher would say a word in English, and as soon as she said it, the two people would turn around and try to be the first one to find and swat the corresponding French word.

I was easily the best kid in class at this game. I regularly beat everyone else, even the teacher. Every time I went up to the board, before the teacher called the word, I would close my eyes and take a breath, let it out, clear my mind, and made sure I was connected to the Force. Everyone laughed at me for doing this, but because of my record of success, they could not deny that something I was doing was working.

This story is an example of how the Force can help us in our everyday lives. I meditate to open myself up to the Force, and while I can get a connection, the real trick is in keeping that connection throughout the day. Think of the benefits you'll receive if you can stay open to the Force- from big things like keeping someone from crossing the street when a car's about to come to little everyday things like noticing when someone needs a little help, like holding the door open for them or picking up the pencil that they dropped. I put these things in the same category as bigger things because they are all helped by having a connection to the Force. By clearing and opening up the mind, you are open to the Force, and you can use that to have a broad view that could help you notice general things, or you can narrow that view like I did while playing the game, which can help you achieve specific tasks.