How did your week go? Did anyone try a bit of mindfulness practice? This week I learned that I am much more able to be present when I am alone, and find that my attention drifts about while others (particularly my family members) are around. Lost in conversation or caught up in thoughts about keeping my son from running into the road or what I am going to make for dinner, I find it challenging to be fully mindful about what is going on in my mind and body or my environment, and to be honest, as a working mother I have very little time on my own. Mealtimes are often harried with the family as we rush to get ready for work and school or as we try to keep our very active son from destroying the kitchen. When on my own, meals are often had in front of a computer or while checking messages on my phone. So, trying to be mindful at moments throughout the day is really good practice for me, particularly at meal times. I am going to focus on that this week.
I'd like to share an excerpt from Buddhism for Mothers by Sarah Napthali that caught my attention today.
"If we could learn to live in full awareness of our present moment and explore our own 'nowness', instead of rehashing the past or planning the future, we would find more joy in our lives, even moments of unsurpassed bliss....The term 'mindfulness' is misleading, suggesting a mind that is full. Rather, mindfulness is knowing what's happening at the time it's happening. We tend to charge through our days on automatic pilot. Preoccupied with our thoughts, we perform our tasks through a mental haze. Our thoughts rebound back and forth between a version of the past and plans for the future....It's quite possible for us to reach the end of a day to find that we have effectively missed the whole thing, and have no idea what actually happened. Having spent the day in our own heads we may have failed to: focus on our tasks, listen attentively to our children, taste more than the first bite of our food notice our surroundings, feel any build up of tension in our bodies, and acknowledge our emotions and what trigered them. If mindfulness is an awareness of all the present moment contains: the sensations of your body, your feelings, perception, assumptions and tendencies.....We might...take more care of our bodies as we learn which foods truly satisfy us, which positions feel most comfortable or how much better we feel after exercise. How are we breathing...How relaxed are our muscles...What is our posture like and what does this say about our state of mind? Being able to observe the rising and passing away of our emotions with mindfulness ensures we experience our lives fully, never ignoring the issues that can teach us the most."
If you liked this, check out Stupendous Joy's short interview with Sarah Napthali here.
You may remember that last week I mentioned that mindfuless is not just about being present but also includes not judging. We will discuss more about what that means next week. Until then, be well. If you want another mindfulness fix, check out this short video of Jon Kabat-Zinn explaining mindfulness or a short guided mindfulness meditation.
and don't forget to practice!
Practice: Everytime you put something in your mouth this week, ask yourself, "Why am I about to eat? Am I actually hungry or am I about to eat because I've been triggered by somehting in my environment? Am I about to eat as a way of coping?" After clarifying your reasons, eat or don't eat but recognnise that there is an opportunity for conscious choice. from Eating the Moment by Pavel G Somov PHD
Metta,
Dharma Mama
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