Reflections & Tips
Reflections & Tips
We all have the innate ability to pay attention and be present to our own experiences. Mindfulness is not something someone can give you nor is it a self-improvement project. Mindfulness is about paying attention to our lives in each moment. Mindfulness meditation is a practice that helps to develop this ability.
Paying attention to our thoughts, feelings, and bodily sensations may seem counterintuitive in our busy 24/7 lives where most of our attention is focused outward, especially with all the information coming at us from multiple technological devices. This access to so much information is a phenomenon of our modern lives. Yet, there is also the phenomenon of the breath, which has been with us for much longer. From the moment we are born to the moment we die, we are breathing.
And, this simple breath, going in and out, rising and falling, moment after moment, offers us an anchor to connect our mind, body, and, “our heart” or emotions. This mind-body connection is real and can be encouraged through mindfulness meditation.
Many people tell me that they are unable to meditate because they can never clear their mind. And, I say, “You can learn to meditate and…you will never completely clear your mind.” This will never happen. We are cognitive intelligent beings and full of thoughts. This idea is a common misconception about meditation. Yet, our minds can settle as we practice watching our breath and simply noticing. And, when the mind wanders away, and it will, we can gently and non-judgmentally bring it back.
Meditation seems so simple but it is not easy!
As we practice mindfulness meditation, we can pay attention to our lives, the pleasant, unpleasant and neutral. We can notice how we react to these stressors and learn to respond more easily than our usual habits. This may lead us to being more focused but also flexible and engaged in our lives. We may discover that we are making healthy choices in our lives…at least some of the time. Perhaps, we will find this to lead to more happiness and joy, not the kind from buying the next gadget – though I admit sometimes that’s a lot of fun - but from bringing self-compassion to our humanness with all its ups and downs, satisfactions and disappointments.
As Jon Kabat-Zinn often says,
“As long as we are breathing, there is more that is right with you than is wrong with you.”
Here in these pages of Reflections & Tips, you will find a variety of suggestions, musings about the practice of meditation and life, a bibliography, poetry, photography and more.
This may include meditations you can try. I invite you to peruse through these pages and enjoy. I hope you will find nourishment to deepen your practice, investigate this amazing practice and find your heart somewhat lightened as you practice engaged mindfulness. Please be in touch with me with comments, questions, and your own ideas about the practice of being present to yourself and others in your world.