I am on a quest to become mindful and live my life in the present moment. I have a tendency as we all do of living in the past or worrying about the future. I know that anything is possible if you set your mind to it, but I also know that it will take alot of energy and patience to attain this goal. I have chosen to go on this journey because I'm tired of feeling like I have to worry about what is going to happen in the future and what has happened in my past. I have learned from my mistakes and always try my best to better myself as best I can so I don't make them again. I have been practicing being in the "present" and enjoying the moment I'm in for a few weeks now. I have noticed that I'm more aware of my surroundings, people I see, listening when someone is talking, how I feel in certain situations and why. This is not easy since we live in a technology ran world. I could be driving and listening to music and enjoying my music and my phone will go off. Or I could be having a nice conversation with someone over coffee in the morning, enjoying the sounds of the birds and the cool air on my face, along with listening to them talking enjoying their company, and a loud truck will pass by, or one of our phones will go off with the daily morning text we receive from friends. I am starting to be more aware of what situations I can control and which ones I cant of remaining in the present moment and being mindful of what I'm doing. We're always going to have interruptions in life in most situations, but its how we handle it and what we choose to do that helps us remain in the moment that matters. For example, I went to the park with my daughter on Mother's Day and we played disc golf. We didn't use our phones and just enjoyed each others company and bonded. I think more people need to have that kind of intimacy with friends, family, and their partners. We let too many things get in the way of our bonding time with people. Back in the day when we didn't have cell phones, we just hung out with friends and enjoyed their company. Yes the house phone may have rang but we weren't sitting there talking to them while having 10 different conversations on our phone texting people. We're lacking that intimacy we once had with people and we're disconnected from our relationships. I believe we should take the time to be aware of this and decide this is "our" time and I'm going to spend it with you, being in the present moment. This is simple if you think about it. I once spent a whole weekend with my girlfriend where we didn't even turn our phones on. It was THE most wonderful weekend I've ever spent with someone. I think we tend to surround ourselves with a ton of people and text anyone and everyone all day to avoid being intimate, because it is a vunerable feeling. Just you and one other person..weather that be your partner, daughter, son, mother, brother..ect.. How much could we actually learn about them if we took that time to be in the present moment and gave that other person that time? It's quite a revelation to realize how much we put in between us and others. I don't by any means think I am better than anyone else for practicing this, and don't expect the people around me to do it also. But I will share in what I've learned and hope that they too can discover how much pleasure and happiness it can bring to their lives, how much more they could learn about a friend, partner, daughter etc...
Mindfulness has two important parts. This first part is defined as attentiveness and awareness of the present moment, both internally (what is happening inside of you) and externally (what is happening outside of you i.e. with others) The second part involves not judging, comparing, or evaluating the present experience as you observe it..
" Do you have patience to wait till your mud settles and the water is clear? Can you remain unmoving till the right action arises by itself?" -Lao Tzu
Here are some tips on being mindful:
1. Do one thing at a time. When your eating, just eat. When your bathing, just bathe. Don't try to knock off a few tasks while eating or bathing etc...
2.Do it slowly and deliberately. Make your actions deliberate, not rushed and random.
3. Do less. Figure out what's most important on your to do list and what's not.
4.Spend at least 5 min a day doing absolutely nothing. Just sit in silence. Become aware of your thoughts. Meditate by breathing and clearing your mind.
5. Stop worrying about the future, focus on the present. Become more aware of what your thinking. Focus on what your doing right now. Enjoy the present moment.
6. Keep practicing....
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