The Practice: Mindfulness
“We practice in order to cultivate a sense of agency, to understand that a range of responses is open to us. We practice to remember to breathe, to have the space in the midst of adversity, to remember our values, what we really care about, and to find support in our inner strength and in one another.”
Daily Practice and Reflection:
Mindfulness is a quality of attention that invites us to be fully present in our lives; providing the space to open to each moment fully, opening to the reality of what is actually happening, and without judgment or attachment. It is a training of the mind to look inward for happiness rather than externalizing it and it is a practice that can ultimately lead to a freedom of heart and mind.
Through our courage, we create the conditions to look inwardly, to meet all parts of ourselves, even the parts we don’t like to acknowledge or feel. We learn how to care for our inner landscape compassionately while recognizing the habits of our minds, clearly understanding what seeds we sow each day that creates our experience.
One can also think of the practice as a resource, an emergency tool kit ready and accessible at any given moment. A tool that guides us towards being more skillful in our daily interactions; to be more responsive and less reactive in moments of challenge; and to provide us with the presence and confidence to act more in alignment with whom we wish to be rather than just from habit.
Mindfulness also provides us with a basic level of sanity because most of the time our minds are someplace else, valuing some other moment and missing out on this moment. We practice mindfulness to see our lives more clearly, to become more alive and present as we deepen our relationship within our own hearts.
So, over the next 15 days, I invite you to take some time each day to sit and pause, to be mindful and intentional with your attention, and to remember what matters most to you. Take time each day to recognize what seeds you plant in your life (habits of mind) and what seeds you wish to cultivate (intentions) to help create a wholesome momentum for your attention. May we all slow down and be a bit more attentive and intentional as we move through our days.
“A spiritual path is where we are working to transform what is difficult or burdensome into wisdom and clarity, which invites us into the experience of freedom. This is called the path and we are driven by our aspirations to transcend into something more meaningful, less violent and more loving.”
Meditation Practice:
“Mindfulness is not about getting anywhere; it’s not about having some special experience. It’s about being who you already are, in your fullness. It is about being, not doing. There is no place to go, nothing to do but dropping into our being; a way of being that is profoundly transformative and healing.”
“Being fully present to what is—without judging or evaluating or wanting something different—is the most basic act of love.”
“It’s the expectations of your own mind that creates your own hell. When you get frustrated because something isn’t the way you thought it would be, examine the way you thought, not just the thing that frustrates you. You’ll see that a lot of your emotional suffering is created by your models of how you think the universe should be and your inability to allow it to be as it is.”