The other day I misplaced my phone three times, lost my keys, stubbed my toes more than once and only half listened to something my husband said to me. Oh, and I almost left the house without letting the dog back inside.
Sound familiar? How much time do we spend not being present to the, well, the present? We're always thinking about something else; what we need to do next, don't forget ____, I can't believe what so-and-so said the other day blah blah blah. That's an awful lot of noise being created inside our heads! It's no wonder we misplace stuff, have accidents and relationship issues! Not to mention the amount of over-the-counter pain reliever we're taking for headaches!
This is our life and we spend hours/days/weeks/months/years mentally checked out from it! What would happen if we actually made the effort to focus on the task at hand? Even something as simple/boring/tedious as washing the dishes?
Try it. The next time you notice you are not present to what you are doing, pause for a moment, take a slow deep breath and focus on what you are doing. Let all the other thoughts come and go and focus on your task. Notice your breathing, slow it down. Nothing matters but that very moment and the task at hand. Notice what is going on in your head. Is it quieter? Calmer? More peaceful? Notice the stillness.
Notice how you feel when you are finished with your task. Take a moment to observe yourself. No need to rush into the next task. It will still be there after you have taken this time to pause.
Congratulations! You just meditated! You don't have to go sit in a quiet place with candles and complete silence or weird music. You can find the time and space to meditate anywhere, at any time!
Being mindful also has other bonuses: less time spent looking for phones, car keys, whatever because you actually notice where you put them as well as better relationships because you focus on the person you are with and believe me, they will notice!
Try it and let me know what happens!
Enjoy the journey!
Susan
Very good advice. So easy to act without mindfullness. thank you Susan
ReplyDeleteIn that Leanne woke me up around 6:00 to wonder if I remembered bringing the OJ and grapefruit juice in from the car last night, then 10 minutes later came in to wake me up again to tell me it had been in the car overnight--we missed it when unloading groceries--this seems rather timely. I admit to being fairly spacey, but I think that has to do with all the things going on in my head.
ReplyDeleteLOL Mark. I left a gallon of milk in my minivan and did not discover it for a week...when it burst and started leaking into the well that houses the latch for the rear seat. Talk about a smell! It took a month to get the smell out of there!
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