Mindfulness

[PartTimeBrewer]

              I am starting a new thread here mainly for purposes of my own catharsis. It is my intention, at least at this point, to make regular contributions. Of course, if anyone else has anything to add, they are more than welcome. If you have any input, please contribute.

              Over a year ago I decided to deal head-on with my self-diagnosed adult attention disorder, (ADD). The inability to stay focused was becoming too stressful. I found myself sitting around watching the clock tick, yet I couldn’t keep “on task” with any project I started. Nothing was getting done and just starting something was becoming depressing.

              The smart thing to do was probably to get professional help, so instead I decided to try to heal myself, at least as a first try. Cognitive therapy and pharmaceuticals (UGH) might be the approved way to go but I decided to try meditation first.

              18 months and countless self-help books later, I still can’t bring myself to a regular, formal meditation program. But, along the way, I discovered informal mindfulness. Yes, I know it is the “Fad” right now. It is hard to navigate modern social trends without “tripping over” somebody extolling the benefits of mindfulness.

              Let me add my voice to the chorus.

[PartTimeBrewer]

"Big events are an opportunity to challenge the way you think. Instead of looking for evidence to rationalize your pre-existent beliefs, try to open your mind to the pervasive uncertainty we find ourselves immersed in."  ~  Daily Zen

[PartTimeBrewer]

"Your diet is not only what you eat. It's what you watch, what you listen to, what you read, the people you hang around ... Be mindful of the things you put into your body, emotionally, spiritually, and physically."  ~   Tiny Buddha

[PartTimeBrewer]

"What really matters is not what function you fulfill in this world, but whether you identify with your function to such an extent that it takes you over and becomes a role that you play. When you play roles, you are unconscious."  ~  Eckhart Tolle

[PartTimeBrewer]

In the rush to return to normal, let us use this time to consider which parts of normal are worth rushing back to."  ~  Dave Hollis

[PartTimeBrewer]

Be the witness of your thoughts. You are what observes, not what you observe.
— Buddhist proverb

[Westerly_2]

An ignorant man is more dangerous than a lion - Turkish proverb

[PartTimeBrewer]

To realize that you do not understand is a virtue; Not to realize that you do not understand is a defect.”
— Lao Tzu

[PartTimeBrewer]

"Enlightenment is not something you achieve. It is the absence of something. All your life you have been going forward after something, pursuing some goal. Enlightenment is dropping all that."
— Joko Beck

[PartTimeBrewer]

"If you are constantly thinking about you tomorrows, you'll end up with a pile of empty yesterdays."  ~  Everyday Mindfulness

[PartTimeBrewer]

"In times like these, mindfulness is not going to stop you from worrying, but it will help you process those worries in a healthier way."  ~  Everyday Mindfulness

[PartTimeBrewer]

"If we practice mindfulness, we always have a place to go when we are afraid."  ~  Everyday Mindfulness

[PartTimeBrewer]

"We work on ourselves in order to help others, but we help others in order to work on ourselves."  ~  Pema Chodron