Tefillah

So this week my wife and I both decided to take on things regarding tefillah. I decided I'd try to daven every shmoneh esrai from a siddur. Of course, I know the words by heart after having said them so many times over the years, but there is just something that gets added when you read them out of a siddur. You obviously pay more attention to what you're saying and you can have more kavannah about the actual meaning of the words. This is certainly no guarantee for a better tefillah experience, but it's definitely a step in the right direction.
I've found that if you aren't looking in a siddur during davening it is very easy to get distracted. If your eyes are open you can catch a glimpse of something that grabs your attention, or if your eyes are closed your mind easily wanders off. So often your focus is where your eyes are, so you might as well be looking at what you're supposed to be focused on.