People-watching
Two activities I love to indulge in whenever I can are bird-watching and people-watching.
With bird-watching, you learn more about the bird. You learn about species of birds you weren't familiar with. You get comfortable predicting how a bird will react, and at what time they will, and can be surprised if they do so or not.
People-watching is both similar and different.
People-watching is boring. It is an exercise in exploring and imagining stories. You go to a park, sit by the window at a coffee or tea shop, and just watch people.
You watch as they walk past. You watch as they talk with one another. Of course, you aren't listening to the conversation, but you can see the cues, the unspoken messages, the nudges.1
It reminds you of how beautiful people are. You see the beauty and the frailty. And remember that you are not also immune to what it means to be human.
It's boring. It's not exciting. It's mundane.
But it's also beautiful.
PS: You can find the digital equivalent through the Astronaut.io project started by Andrew Wong and James Thompson in 2011.
On the flip side of boring, and a bigger scale, you get to watch as people create beauty and nuance. And you have the option to decide how best to support them.